


Find You in the Moon

by colecallcheol



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: A lot of Flashbacks, AI!Wonwoo, Angst, Comedy, M/M, Mentions of accidents, Mingyu needs a man so let's help him, No Spoilers, Romance, Soonyoung as bestfriend of the decade, There are more tags along the way!, Wonwoo is a rule obeyer (make him stop pls), mentions of affairs, side soonhoon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-02
Updated: 2020-12-04
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:48:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 30,621
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26714740
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/colecallcheol/pseuds/colecallcheol
Summary: 'Tired of being lonely and always the third party? Afraid of being single for life and want someone to cuddle at night? Check out our website and try your luck!'Clicking the advertisement, it takes him to "A.. humanoid renting site? I thought it was about online dating stuff?"Mingyu sighed and was about the leave and exit the site.When a certain humanoid caught his attention, that made him reconsider his choices.orA MinWon Humanoid AU wherein Wonwoo is the AI and Mingyu is the human being. Wonwoo needs help, Mingyu needs a boyfriend and a relationship blooms between revelations and time limit.
Relationships: Jeon Wonwoo/Kim Mingyu
Comments: 16
Kudos: 34





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer:  
> This is a work of fiction. All opinions expressed in this story are the author's, or fictional. The scenarios, events and flow of the story are all from my imaginations and memories.
> 
> ㅡ Latecomer and FYITM are not connected with each other.  
> ㅡ Spoiler alert:  
> * The title doesn't have anything to do with the story haha. It's hard to find a suitable one but it might be important too??? :D  
> * Slow updates
> 
> Twitter: @boochoiled

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
"He's awake! Seungkwan, hurry and call Jihoon!"  
  
Someone shouted in excitement and commanded someone named Seungkwan. The one 'awake' slowly opened his eyes and blinked in confusion, focusing it. After getting out of his state, he realized that he's in a white-painted room full of machines and equipments.  
  
Looking beside him, a tall, blonde-haired, soft-looking male is staring down on him with a gentle smile on his face. "W-Where am I? Who are you?"  
  
The other man answered, "My name's Jeonghan and don't worry, we just have to fix you wholely and make it work." Before he got to ask another question, the door bursted open and a figure came running inside.  
  
"Jihoon, he's here." Jeonghan said to a panting Jihoon, with black hair and a cute-looking face. Approaching the others with slow steps, "Oh.. my god. After a few months, you're finally here." Jihoon said dazedly.  
  
"We've been waiting for you to work again, Wonwoo. It's been a long time." Jeonghan said, a soft, strange smile plastered on his face out of relief. "Wonwoo..? Who?" The two, realizing they didn't make it clear yet, sighed before Jihoon answered.  
  
"WW 717, your name is Wonwoo."  
  
  
  
"Oi! Mingyu~" Upon hearing where and from whom the voice came from, Mingyu, a 22-year-old tall, handsome and clumsy Arts Professor in BSS University, groaned before turning around to face his bestfriend, Soonyoung.  
  
"Kwon, why are you here? I told you I'm coming to the university." Mingyu asked to a now sulking Soonyoung walking towards him outside Mingyu's house.  
  
"Why are you calling me Kwon, huh? Anddd, just because it's Saturday doesn't mean I won't pester you." Wiggling his eyebrows to annoy the other, Soonyoung laughed when Mingyu started walking faster, now on the sidewalk. "Hey! I was just joking. You know what? It's Saturday, why don't you accompany me to this new place downtown andㅡ"  
  
"Shut up, Soon. You just want to set me up to someone. Hmp, you and your tactics." The answer, though expected, made Soonyoung's shoulder slumped, and sighed. "Gyu, you've been working yourself too hard, you know? You deserve to rest for a while too. I don't want you to tire yourself and collapse in front of me, I don't have any money for that."  
  
The last part made Mingyu stopped walking and looked behind him, staring at the older in disbelief before laughing. "Way to ruin the sudden atmosphere." Mingyu said but considered what the other requested for a while. "So? Are you coming with me or yes?"  
  
Sighing in defeat, Mingyu nodded his head Yes and was about to walk away when someone called him. 'Seungcheol', the caller's ID said. Mingyu celebrated inside his head, a way to escape. "I need to answer this first. Must be something important since he called.. hello?"  
  
"Aye, Gyu! Just wanted to tell you that today's meeting is cancelled. You should take a rest for a while." Ah. 'Or maybe not. Maybe life's too cruel to let me escape Soonyoung, huh.' Sighing, Mingyu answered, "Okay okay, hyung, thank you for letting me know. You should rest, too." After a minute of small talks, Mingyu ended the call and pocketed his phone.  
  
"So? What did he say?" Soonyoung expectantly asked the other who just snorted knowing that Soonyoung clearly heard it, assuming from his reactions. The nerve of this guy. "Come on, before I take Seungcheol's advice and rest for a while." A 'yay!' then after was heard from the older.  
  
While walking, Soonyoung told him, "Why won't you find yourself a man, Gyu? I mean, you're handsome, a good cook, talented, artsy and.. clumsy? That's a cute personality of yours, don't even bother correcting me." The older rushed after he saw the hesitant face Mingyu pulled.  
  
'Find myself a man, huh', Mingyu thought while Soonyoung keeps rambling about him not getting a man himself but helping Mingyu. 'No problem with that though', he added.  
  
While the other is distracted, Mingyu felt someone is following them and suddenly turned around, making Soonyoung stopped talking. "What's wrong? Did you forget something? Is that a part of your personality now?"  
  
Mingyu just let it go, maybe he's just being paranoid, and looked ahead before saying, "It's nothing. Where are we going again?" Changing the topic, Mingyu listened intently while looking around silently to not make the other worry.  
  
After a few seconds, he felt it again and heard faint footsteps this time. He just told Soonyoung that he need to take a pee so they have to hurry. The new place, a cat cafe, is just a few blocks away so it's near.  
  
After waiting for the red lights to show up, they successfully crossed the street and continued to walk. When the green lights went on, Mingyu looked behind and saw someone across the street, impatiently waiting for the red lights to show again. A male, wearing a beanie and shades, is currently 'having a phone call' but the opening of the beanie covered his ears. And just like that, Mingyu knew that his intuition is right.  
  
They're being followed. But why? What did they want from him?  
  
  
  
By the time 6:25 pm arrived, Mingyu's at home again, so tired he just felt like cuddling all the pillows inside his bedroom and sleep like a child again. 'Being an adult is a tiring thing'. Sigh.  
  
But instead of doing that, he pushed himself to his bedroom, not to sleep but to get his laptop containing all of his work then went to the kitchen to grab some food for dinner.  
  
Done preparing his food, he opened his laptop and start working.  
  
"These kids are such a pain, why can't they pass the requirements needed? Ugh!" Mingyu typed furiously, emailing his students to pass the projectㅡa self-portrait of themselvesㅡalready.  
  
"I gave them a month and a half for that, isn't it enough?" Biting in his food, a pasta if you can call that a dinner, Mingyu continued to examine the names of his students that passed the project on-time, late, or not at all.  
  
While distracted at work, an advertisement popped up on his notification with a 'ding!' sound, the content piqued his interest.  
  
'Tired of being lonely and always the third party? Afraid of being single for life and want someone to cuddle at night? Check out our website and try your luck!'  
  
"Always the third party? Soonyoung doesn't have anyone at all as well.." Mingyu mumbled and chuckled sadly. 'Oh Soonyoung, help yourself too.'  
  
Clicking the advertisement, it takes him to "A.. humanoid renting site? I thought it was about online dating stuff?" He felt disappointed but shake it off, then scroll down to read for more details. After reading a few articles, informations on how the humanoid works and how to rent it, Mingyu sighed and was about to leave and exit the site.  
  
When a certain humanoid caught his attention, that made him reconsider his choices.  
  
  
  
  
Jeon Wonwoo, WW 717  
  
Facts:  
An introvert, quiet type  
Talented; can sing, dance, rap and act  
Doesn't like aegyo and skinships too much  
Is actually a softie  
  
Likes:  
Reading books  
Listening to ballads  
Wearing sweaters  
Joking a lot  
Cats  
More cats  
Spending time with cats while reading a novel  
  
Dislikes:  
If you don't laugh at his jokes  
  
The last part made Mingyu chuckled in amusement, getting absorbed and interested in Wonwoo. Like a sign, another notification popped up and said, 'If you're interested, just email us right away!' with an email address.  
  
Opening his gmail again, for a different purpose this time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I inserted the photos now, yayyy!! I can't place it exactly at the center for every devices so.. yeah, I'm so sorry ;_____;


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's chapter 2 for you all! Thank you so much for reading, I appreciate it so much! Being an ICT student helped me a lot haha :'D

It's currently 12 pm, Wonwoo is 'resting'ㅡas Jeonghan likes to interpret it, 'You have to recharge yourself, Wonwoo'ㅡin his bedroom inside Jihoon's household, the one that the owner arranged for him. Sitting near the window, he's reading a book about wichery and magic.  
  
"How can the author write fantasy this good? Their head must be full of imaginations and magic itself." Wonwoo mumbled.  
  
Before he can begin reading chapter 10, his rectangular deviceㅡ'This is your phone now, Wonwoo-ya'ㅡbuzzed, indicating a phone call. Wonwoo stood up after inserting a bookmark on the page to make reading again easier.  
  
Clicking the green button, Wonwoo placed the phone near his ear and answered, "Hello, Jeonghan-ssi? What do you need me for?" "Wonwoo-ya, I told you to drop the formalities, you know?" Sighs. "Anyways! Can you come here again? I have something to tell you."  
  
"Yes, sure. I'll just have to follow the path from last week so it's okay. Do I have to bring something?" Jeonghan stopped to think for a while before saying, "No, nothing. Umm.. just. Can you wear long sleeves again? Since you're not completely whole yet.."  
  
Looking at his left arm, Wonwoo inspected it and didn't answer for 5 seconds that made Jeonghan stutter. "I-I mean, if it's okay with you."  
  
Keeping the phone beside his right ear, "I always wear sweaters so long sleeves aren't a problem, people won't see the unfinished part, don't worry. Do you have any more request, Jeonghan-ssi?"  
  
After hearing Jeonghan's No as an answer, Wonwoo ended the call and get ready to leave.  
  
  
  
Entering the building, Wonwoo searched for the right hall and walked closer to the room where he first opened his eyes.  
  
After knocking, he heard a gentle 'come in!', making him follow the voice. Jihoon, working on something that looks like a CPU of some sort, is the first person he saw.  
  
Hearing someone came in, Jihoon turned around and smiled before saying "Hello, Wonwoo." for acknowledgement. Jeonghan then came after from the other door inside the room, holding a folder in his hands.  
  
"Wonwoo, it's good to see you again! Don't just stand there and sit here." After Jeonghan sat down, he pointed to the chair across him and Wonwoo followed.  
  
"How are you? Do you experience any difficulties so far?" The AI shook his head No and asked, "When are you going to complete me, Jeonghan-ssi? Is my CPU needed to be changed too?" Jeonghan saw Jihoon move around, before sighing but answered nonetheless.  
  
"Don't worry about that, Won. Your CPU's.. in good condition but it's still missing a lot of parts so we'll fix it, we just need someone who can help us." The oldest among the 3 informed Wonwoo, who nodded his head in understanding.  
  
"Anyways, let me tell you why I call you here." Jeonghan opened the folder he was holding earlier, revealing a photo of a man Wonwoo never saw this past week of his existence.  
  
"This man right here is Kim Mingyu, and your mission is to make him tell you who can help us to fix, not just your CPU, but you, completely." Before Wonwoo could ask, Jeonghan added.  
  
"You'll be his boyfriend."  
  
  
  
"Hello, Seungcheol-hyung! Did you get my email?" Mingyu called a half-sleepy Seungcheol at 8:30 am.  
  
"Yes.. why did you file a leave for a day, anyway? And you called me at 8:30 in the morning, Gyu!" The caller felt guilty but answered the question nonetheless.  
  
"I'm going to buy a gift for my mom, hyung. Her birthday is getting near, I don't want to disappoint her again." Seungcheol sighed after hearing the last part. "Gyu.. okay, I'll just report it to the office and make someone substitute you for a while."  
  
Mingyu cheered, making a 'yay!' sound before thanking the older. "Okay, okay. No need to thank me, Gyu. I guess I'll buy auntie a gift too." "You better be, we're going back to our province for her 'debut'." The two laughed, agreeing afterwards.  
  
"Since I'm done here, I should go now, hyung! Sorry for interrupting your sleep.." Seungcheol just let it go and bid Mingyu goodbye, a signal for the call to be ended.  
  
After pocketing his phone, Mingyu leave the house, ready to accomplish his mission.  
  
  
  
Arriving inside the mall 5 minutes before 12, Mingyu decided to eat lunch first before buying a gift.  
  
After eating his food, Mingyu went to the accessories shop and look for pendants. Searching for the correct aisle and successfully finding it, he looked for a certain pendant whenㅡ  
  
"Kim Mingyu?" Someone called his name that made the male turn around, unexpectedly meeting that person again. Wonder etched in his face, Mingyu blurted "Seri." before greeting a sweetly smiling girl.  
  
"Uh-huh, it's been a long time, Gyu. I missed you." The other nodded, still confused but smiled anyways. "When did you come back? How's modelling?"  
  
Sighs. "Modelling isn't that hard but my schedule's been getting in a way of my relationship with Kino." "Anyways, enough about me. Are you going back to our province for auntie's birthday?" Seri added. Mingyu just nodded as a response and turned around, inspecting the pendants behind the glass.  
  
"You've been looking at those very intently. Finding a specific one?" The male hummed unconsciously, examining each pendants and necklaces for a moon-shaped pendant with a ruby, pearl and amethyst.  
  
"I actually want to talk to you and catch up about our friendship but since you're busy, I'll just text you. Is your number the new one you gave me?" Unsuccessfully finding the pendant, Mingyu slumped his shoulder and sighed heavily. 'It's another fail day for us, Mingyu.'  
  
Facing the other, he answered, "Oh um, yeah. I really want to talk to you but I need to go home now. You can text me anytime." With a smile, Seri hugged him and broke it when the other patted her back.  
  
"Tell me about all of what happened to you, okay?" "Yeah yeah, okay. You should tell me about yours too, you know? I know life's tougher than we expected."  
  
"Don't worry about me, Gyu. I can get away from trouble in my life, you know?" The female flexed her 'strong arms' making them laughed. After realizing that they're inside the shop, they tone it down and bid goodbye to each other.  
  
Mingyu left the said store with a bitter taste inside his mouth. 'I didn't know I'll get to see you so soon.' before wandering around the mall. By the time he decided to exit the mall and go home, he's holding the gift he bought in his left hand and some groceries on his right one.  
  
Exiting the mall, he went home.  
  
  
  
Another morning came, Mingyu's alarmㅡboomboomㅡwent off, waking him up. After getting out of his sleepy state, he checked his phone for the time, indicating 8 am.  
  
Below the time, he saw the reminder he set up last night. "My package's arriving later, huh." Grabbing his phone, he got out of his bed and went to the kitchen for breakfast.  
  
Cooking a pack of noodles, Mingyu grabbed a bowl and poured the contents from the pot to the container, 5 minutes later. With the bowl in his hands, he placed it on the table and was about to sit down when a knock was heard.  
  
Groaning, he looked at the clock before saying, "Is it here already? I was just about to eat, ugh." after he saw the short hand pointing at 8, the longer one at 3. Standing straight, he walked closer to the door and opened it.  
  
Revealing someone, or something, he saw before.  
  
"Good Morning, Mingyu-ssi."  
  
Jeon Wonwoo.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 3 onwards will be longer than the last two so.. fasten your seatbelts! Anddd thank you for reading, I'm grateful >__<
> 
> If you have any opinions, I'm open to all of it and will read them. I'll appreciate it so much! uwu
> 
> (。。。)- flashbacks

Mingyu is sitted on a chair near the projector inside the principal's office, his laptop opened.  
  
Seungcheol is standing in front, showing his presentation on how to solve problems listed by the students. "Base on the student council's survey, the top 3 in the list are the food being served on the cafeteria, the genre of some books in the library and recess not included as a subject.. These kids, really.." He mumbled the last part, shaking his head to maintain his composure.  
  
"Let's discuss what we can possibly do for the foods on the cafeteria. Base on my observations and experience, actually, the foods being served are repeated twice a day. Maybe we should do somehing with that and give them different meals and snacks each day? But the foods should be the cheaper ones when it comes to ingredients."  
  
The others inside the said room nodded, a sign of agreement. The Math Professor raised her hand and suggested, "Should we talk about the prices too, then?" Laughing sounds were heard and someone said a 'As expected of a Math Major!'  
  
While the others are busy giving ideas and suggestions whilst joking with each other, Mingyu's mind is flying somewhere, eyes unfocused and thinking of something that happened earlier.  
  
。。。。。。。。。  
  
"Good Morning, Mingyu-ssi."  
  
Jeon Wonwoo. Currently wearing a cream-colored sweater that made him look soft despite his sharp and cold-and-cat-like eyes plus a black jeans for his bottom. Add the fact that he's one or two inches smaller than Mingyu, that made Wonwoo cuter.  
  
Realizing that he's staring too much and probably showing a confused expression, Mingyu cleared his throat and answered, "G-Good Morning. What are you doing here?"  
  
The one that showed up just asked as an answer, "Would you like me to come in? You wouldn't want people to see me." Mingyu stepped aside and Wonwoo went inside.  
  
Closing the door behind him, Mingyu saw the humanoid walked towards the dining table and just stand beside a chair. "You didn't answer my question yet. What are you doing here? I cancelled my plan of renting you, why did they still send you?"  
  
The other just sighed. "Jihoon-ssi and Jeonghan-ssi told me you need a boyfriend, so I'll be yours." The last part made Mingyu flustered, the action didn't go unnoticed by Wonwoo and added, "Are you sick, Mingyu-ssi? Come sit down here."  
  
The 'sick' person obeyed the command and sat down, across Wonwoo that didn't sit down yet. "By the way, stop with the formal conversations, just call me Mingyu."  
  
The latter started to eat his now cold noodles, Mingyu whined internally. Meanwhile, Wonwoo just stood there with no plan of sitting anytime soon because the owner doesn't tell him to. 'He's an obedient one.' Mingyu thought.  
  
"Would you like to be my boyfriend, Mingyu?" The one receiving the sudden question, choked while slurping the soup of his food. Grabbing the water bottle in front of him, Mingyu drank half of it before looking at the AI.  
  
He contemplated for a while before sighing. "Do I have a say in this? Those two just pushed you in my life all of a sudden, seriously.." Wonwoo take that as a Yes. While waiting for his 'boyfriend' to finish eating, Mingyu asked him.  
  
"How about the bill? You're an expensive thing, I don't have enough money for that." Wonwoo just recited the answer given by Jeonghan in case Mingyu ask and he did. "Don't worry about the money. Jeonghan-ssi said that he'll give you a discount and you can pay whenever you want. No worries, he said."  
  
Mingyu just nodded curtly and the conversation ended. By the time 8:37 am arrived, he cleaned up the table and started walking towards the kitchen. Wonwoo took it as an opportunity to start. "I actually want to talk to you about the rules, do's and don'ts."  
  
The other just pretended he didn't hear anything and continued washing the dishes, then heard the other sighed. Mingyu finished doing the chore and faced Wonwoo, who jumped in surprise.  
  
"Oh? How can an AI get startled? That's not a part of your personality." Wonwoo snorted in annoyance, but remembered his mission of being Mingyu's boyfriend. In short, alluring the other so he said, "Humanoid is a carbon copy of a human so we feel human emotions as well." with a smile.  
  
'I know that, thank you very much' is what the human wanted to say but just nodded his head. "About the rules, I still have work so I guess we'll just discuss about that later. Come with me."  
  
Wonwoo just followed him and stopped when Mingyu did. "This is a guest room but I guess this will be yours starting today. Just tell me if you need anything, my room's just 2 doors down." The unexpected concern made the other confused, who freezed but managed to nod as an answer.  
  
"So.. I'll go ahead then. If you're, uh feeling hungry, I have some food inside the fridge so make yourself comfortable." After that, Mingyu bid goodbye and went inside his room.  
  
。。。。。。。。。  
  
"Earth to Kim Mingyu!" A hand is waving in front of him followed by a familiar voice, that made him snapped back to present.  
  
"Oh? Are you here already?" Soonyoung asked him, making sure. "Y-Yeah, sorry. When did you come here?" "Gyu, the meeting is adjourned already. Where were you?" The younger sighed, "Nothing. Just thinking of my package that didn't come earlier."  
  
"What did you buy, anyway? Tsk-tsk, Seokmin's been teaching you a lot." Soonyoung accused Seokmin while the other's packing up. Slinging the laptop bag in his shoulder, they left the principal's office.  
  
"I'm hungry, have you eaten lunch yet?" Mingyu asked, they're now nearing the gate. "I'm planning of eating on the fast food chain, wanna come?" Soonyoung nodded enthusiastically, clearly hungry too. "That's a good idea, class is starting soon so you better hurry up, Mr. Kim."  
  
Mingyu jokingly glared at the older but laughed with Soonyoung nonetheless while heading towards their destination.  
  
  
  
Back to the Kim household, Wonwoo is currently examining the what once was a guest room.  
  
The room is cleaned up, its walls are painted in teal and the furnitures are on the right place. The bed was a twin one, fitted just right for him. The bedside table has a little plant next to a lampshade, purple in color.  
  
Some photos of nature are plastered on the wall; one of a sunrise in a sunflower field, one of a snowy forest and the last one is a photo of a silhouette of a person sitting on top of a cliff under the moonless sky. 'He's an artistic one.' Wonwoo thought.  
  
After observing the room, he decided to sit down on the mattress, his first time of doing so after coming inside Mingyu's home. Doing nothing at all, he called Jeonghan.  
  
"Wonwoo? Have you arrived safely?" The AI nodded then realized that he's on the phone so he answered, "Um, yes. I'm sorry I didn't call you earlier." Jeonghan sighed in relief. "Why did you call, Won?"  
  
This time, Wonwoo's the one who sighed for a different reason. "Do I still have to be here? He told me he doesn't need any boyfriend and cancelled already." The AI just released another sigh when Jeonghan told him that Mingyu's a tough-looking guy but actually a kind one so he needs to be patient.  
  
'He's an annoying one, though. Such a pain.' Wonwoo thought, not wanting to say it out loud. "You should always update me, okay? Especially when you got injured." "Okay, noted. I'll just message you the updates." Saying their goodbyes, Wonwoo ended the call.  
  
Flopping down on the bed, he closed his eyes.  
  
'Might as well recharge first before he went home.'  
  
  
  
5:30 pm, Mingyu's on his way home and is inside the bus. While looking outside and staring at the sunset, he remembered his and Wonwoo's conversations earlier.  
  
Sighs. "Maybe I'm too cold in him, it's not his fault, anyway." He mumbled, feeling guilty now. Arriving at the last stop, he leave the bus along with the others.  
  
Grabbing the door key in his pocket when he got outside his house, Mingyu was about to insert the key when someone opened it for him. "Welcome home, Mingyu." A smiling Wonwoo is in front of him, holding the doorknob.  
  
"Thanks." Mingyu answered, ignoring the thumping in his heart. When he was already inside, Wonwoo closed the door behind them. "Are you hungry yet?" Mingyu added.  
  
After the AI opened the door for the owner, he didn't know what his next actions would be. "Um.. not yet. I ate some pasta earlier, sorry I didn't ask." Mingyu smiled, his canines showing. "I told you to make yourself comfortable, you know? Besides, you're living here for awhile."  
  
Mingyu leave an awkwardly standing Wonwoo for a while to change his clothes and leave his belongings inside his room before going back to the living room. "It's been 3 minutes and you're still standing there?" Shaking his head in mock annoyance, Mingyu grabbed the other's wrist and showed him to the kitchen.  
  
Confused, Wonwoo asked, "What am I suppose to do here? I.. I-I actually don't have any cooking skills.." He mumbled the last part, feeling embarrassed. "Don't worry, you can just help me by tasting the foods."  
  
Wonwoo just gave a small smile, unsure on how to react to the sudden kindness from the other. 'Isn't he a cold one earlier?'  
  
"Oh, yeah. I'm really sorry about that." Wonwoo's eyes widen in surprise, probably mumbled his thoughts out loud. It's possible for Mingyu to hear it in this close distance between them. But, what shocked him the most is what the other said.  
  
"I'm not usually like that so I apologize. I guess stress from work had been eating me up." Mingyu looked back and smiled. "Please don't feel intimidated and uncomfortable around me, you're my boyfriend now."  
  
Turning back to his cooking, the human continued to cut potatoes. The AI, still at daze, the last part keeps repeating inside his head. 'You're my boyfriend now.'  
  
'Why am I reacting this way? Jihoon and Jeonghan really did something in their humanoids..' He's still thinking silently, the reason why he didn't hear what Mingyu told him. "Excuse me?" "I said, get the marinated pork inside the fridge, we need it for our dinner."  
  
Wonwoo sheepishly nodded and walked towards the fridge, oblivious to Mingyu's chuckles. After getting the container with a pork inside, Wonwoo came back and saw Mingyu humming a tune. "Here."  
  
The latter muttered a 'thank you' and continued, now slicing the pork into rectangular shapes. "What are you cooking?" Mingyu side-glanced the other for 3 seconds before returning his gaze to the pork, now on the pan, answering, "Sweet and Sour Pork. How's that, dear costumer?"  
  
Wonwoo nodded with a 'hmm', pretending to think for a while. "Is the pork high-quality, Chef? We belong on the high class category, I'm allergic to 'common' meat."  
  
The other laughed, caught off-guard by the AI's answer. "The pork is indeed high in quality, Sir. All of the ice used inside the freezer are from Mt. Fuji." He answered with a wink, making Wonwoo laugh.  
  
"I hope you don't dislike me now, I laughed at your joke earlier." Wonwoo glared at the other. "Oh, shut up." The laughter faded after that and the sweet and sour sauce is now ready. Two minutes had passed and Mingyu removed the pork from the pan and put it in the plate.  
  
Pouring the sauce, the two smelled the aroma of the finished dish. "Okay, can you grab some plate and utensils for us? I'll go put this on the table."  
  
Wonwoo nodded and grab the things needed. While Mingyu's on the living room preparing, his phone, currently on the kitchen, rings. Since the AI's the one near it, he answered the call and was about to give it to the owner when the caller speaks.  
  
"Aye aye, Gyu!" An unknown person shouted as a greeting, something is telling Wonwoo that he had heard this voice before. "Gyu? Yu~hoo! Did you answer my call while you're asleep?"  
  
Mingyu came back after noticing that the other didn't appear yet. He saw Wonwoo's furrowed eyebrows while holding his phone. Walking closer, "Wonwoo? What is it?" He asked and was given a slow head shake as an answer. Slowly giving the phone back to its owner, Wonwoo told him.  
  
"Uh.. someone called you and I answered it but didn't speak so he asked if you answered the call while sleeping." The other nodded while looking at the screen, understanding the situation now. "Mm, maybe that's why Soonyoung ended it. Come on, I'm hungry." Mingyu dragged the AI towards the living room, the dinner on the table.  
  
They started eating in silence whilst Wonwoo's thinking back to the owner of the voice earlier. 'Soonyoung..? His voice sounds familiar though, huh. Maybe I walked pass him before and heard his voice while talking to someone else.'  
  
Mingyu noticed the AI drowning in his thoughts so he waved his hand in front of it, making Wonwoo snapped back to present. "Hey, something's bugging you. A bug is dangerous for an AI, you know?"  
  
The latter blinked his eyes a couple of times before smirking to mask his laughter. "Is someone concerned? Aw, that's heart-warming of you."  
  
Mingyu joked a 'For your information, you don't have a heart' to hide his flustered state. Wonwoo just shrugged, relieved that the question was long forgotten.  
  
"Anyways, let's discuss the rules or conditions or whatever." The humanoid then sit up straight, readying his self. "Okay. First of all, no intimate touching."  
  
Mingyu snorted before saying, "Why should I follow those rules of yours? I'm your boyfriend, anyway." Wonwoo inched his face closer to the human, making the latter froze and Wonwoo smiled in victory, flicking the other's forehead aferwards.  
  
"Ow! Is that a part of the rules too?" Wonwoo sat back down and shook his head No. "That's a part of my routine now." Mingyu pouted and continued to eat. "Next, you can't tell anyone about me nor anything about our relationship."  
  
The other made a 'Mm-mm' sound. "Okay, next. You can't order me to go outside." That made the human stopped eating and stared at the other, thinking whether the AI is joking or not.  
  
"Are those rules made by you or..?" Shaking his head No, "Jeonghan and Jihoon made them." An 'Ah' sound was heard then after.  
  
After Wonwoo said the last rule, they already finished eating dinner. Grabbing his plate, he was about to stand up to clean the dishes when Mingyu stopped him. "Why? You already cooked dinner for us, I can do the dishes." Since Mingyu's a persistent one, he disagreed.  
  
"No need, it's dangerous for you. Plus, it's not a part of the rules." In pure annoyance, Wonwoo glared at his boyfriend, eyes sharp that made Mingyu gulped. "So what do you want me to do? Live here without doing anything but just watch you? No thank you, I prefer watching the stars up above." Then left a wide-mouthed Mingyu, to disobey the latter and clean up.  
  
The human just smiled in defeat and followed the other who's already starting. After cleaning the dishes, or more like half-cleaning, half-throwing water at each other and full-bickering, they decided to head to their separate rooms and call it a day.  
  
"Good night, Wonwoo! Fully recharge yourself, okay?" Wonwoo answered a 'No need to remind me, mom' but waved Mingyu good bye and good night at the same time anyways. Opening then closing the door when he came in, Mingyu looked at the clock on top of the bedside table, indicating 9 pm.  
  
Sighing, "Time's passing by quickly, huh." before yawning.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 4 is full of fluff, fluff and important stuff!

It has been a week and 4 days since Wonwoo and Mingyu's night convo. Mingyu's at home, today's his day-off, and decided to leave the house not until Wonwoo agreed.  
  
"Come on Wonwoo, it's Sunday!" The AI rolled his eyes in irritation to a sulking Mingyu, now cleaned up and dressed well. "We already talked about this, Mingyu-ssi. Got amnesia already?"  
  
Mingyu's eyes became unfocused for a few seconds before suggesting, "Maybe we should contact Jeonghan or Jihoon? I don't have their numbers so you should." Snorting, Wonwoo challenged the other. "And why should I? It's your idea."  
  
The other stared at him eye-to-eye, Wonwoo figured that an idea is already forming inside the other's head. "If you don't call them.." Mingyu started. "..no more wifi for you, and that means no more watching cat videos at night." 'Not an idea but a blackmail, great.' Wonwoo wanted to wipe that smirk off out of the human's face.  
  
"That's no fair, though. You can't use weaknesses against anyone." But grabbed his phone and searched for Jihoon's number. Mingyu cheered in victory before adding, "When they answered, give it to me, I'll talk to them. AND, put it on loud speaker."  
  
Seeing Jihoon's number on his contacts, Wonwoo pressed the telephone icon. The receiver answered after the 4th ring, "I swear you keep on calling me, sㅡ" "This is my first time calling you, though."  
  
The other didn't answer for a while, looks like he checked who's actually calling him, before clearing his throat. "O-Oh hello, Wonwoo. Why'd you call? Did something happen?"  
  
Sighing, Wonwoo gave the phone to Mingyu, who was silently listening earlier. "Nothing will happen if you won't agree with me." The AI raised an eyebrow, thinking if he should smack the other's head for its behaviour. He dismissed the idea and listened.  
  
"What idea are you planning, Kim?" Jihoon asked, a lot of noise was heard from the other line. 'He must be working with a humanoid again.'  
  
Mingyu side-glanced his company before asking, "Where's Mr. Yoon? I actually want to ask for your permission if it's okay for Wonwoo to go outside?" A quiet thump was heard before Jihoon sighed.  
  
"Didn't Wonwoo told you about the rules? It's dangerous for him, Mingyu. And for you as well. People might see a humanoid walking down the street, still unfinished." After hearing the other's statement, Mingyu saw Wonwoo turned his head to stare outside the window, looking at the children playing tag.  
  
Like a sign, a door creaking sound was heard from Jihoon's area and said, "Oh? Who are you talking to, Ji?" Jeonghan came, and an awkward tension was gone a little.  
  
"Mingyu and Wonwoo. Mingyu's asking for permission." Jihoon directed the answer to Jeonghan, who hummed afterwards. "Hello, Mingyu? What do you need permission for?" Mingyu then repeated his request and the other contemplated.  
  
"Hm.. can we talk about this for a second?" Then silence, meaning that Jeonghan muted the call and talked to Jihoon privately. Turning to the AI, whose eyes are unfocused, Mingyu poked the other's side and successfully made him yelp.  
  
Glaring at Mingyu, "What did you do that for?" Mingyu shrugged as a response and added, "They're discussing on the other line. What are you thinking so deeply for? Can't believe thinking's a part of your skills."  
  
Wonwoo slapped the 'joker's' arm, fighting the smile that is threatening to form. "Just wondering why they're overprotective of me.. I mean, I'm still not wholely finished yet but.." sigh. "What are they being so secretive about?"  
  
Mingyu felt a pang inside his chest, wanting to hug Wonwoo but his mind disagreed. Before he can comfort him through words, a falling piece of metalㅡa spoon, specificallyㅡwas heard. The two looked back at Wonwoo's phone. "Oh wow, I'm sorry about that. This cake is delicious, chocolate for the win." Jeonghan's voice was heard, before clanking of a utensil and plate noises.  
  
Without seeing the actual scenario, Wonwoo knows Jihoon's regretting his life choices now. Laughing, Mingyu asked, "Have you been searching for a piece of cake instead of discussing the reason why I called?"  
  
Jihoon sighed loudly and told the two about the final decision. "Okay okay, just be careful and call us immediately when you see suspicious people."  
  
"Okay, noted! Thank you!" Mingyu cheered enthusiastically, nudging Wonwoo. "And Wonwoo, have fun in there okay? You should send pictures to us as well." The AI can hear the smile behind Jihoon's voice, that made him mirror the action.  
  
Jeonghan added, "A picture of you wouldn't hurt, Won! It will serve as my wallpaper." And just like that, Mingyu and Wonwoo both said their goodbyes and ended the call.  
  
"What about that, huh? I won! You should get dressed now, loser." The human gave the phone back to Wonwoo and puffed out his chest, acting proudly. The other just snorted before saying, "I'm not a loser, I'm your boyfriend." before walking away, to change his attire.  
  
Let's just say that Mingyu's not used to a flirt Wonwoo, and he's now as red as a tomato.  
  
  
  
Arriving outside their destination, an arcade, Wonwoo's eyes sparkled in a mix of amazement and joy. The action didn't go unnoticed by Mingyu that found an opportunity to tease the AI.  
  
"Okay, you don't want to go outside huh? Okay.." The now heating up Wonwoo rolled his eyes and smack the other inside his head instead, not wanting people to look. "Shut up, it's part of the rules." Mingyu just nodded his head slowly and grabbed Wonwoo's arm to drag the both of them.  
  
Inside, a lot of gaming machines are lined-up next to each other. There are basketball shooting game, Little Monopoly, Car racing and much more. Even a mini bowling game is there as well, in the corner of the area.  
  
Getting hyped up, Mingyu went near the car racing section. "Wanna race?" Wonwoo snorted. "You sure? This might not put you to sleep later." The human just laughed then picked the left seat, positioning himself. While on the right side, Wonwoo hold the steering wheel, getting absorbed as well.  
  
'Ready, players! Starting the race in 3.. 2.. 1..'  
  
By the time they heard a 'Go!' as a signal, the race begins.  
  
  
  
"Who's the loser now, loser?" The winner, Wonwoo, teased Mingyu. "The W's in Wonwoo stands for Winner anyway, you should have seen it." Mingyu's pout turned into a small smile after hearing the joke unexpectedly.  
  
"Yeah yeah. Gotta admit, you did very well, actually. It's like you've been driving in your past life." The human then looked around to search for a new game to play, oblivious to Wonwoo's mumbling. "Mm.. it felt like a dejavu..? Is that possible?"  
  
Mingyu then saw the fishing game and decided to buy tokens. "Hey Won, can you buy some snacks for us? My stomach's scolding me~" Wonwoo just nodded and went to the snacks section.  
  
Buying 2 bottles of iced tea, a bag of potato chips for him and a barbeque-flavored popcorn for Mingyu, he gave some paper bill to the one assisting him behind the counter. Wonwoo was about to go back when he felt a pair of eyes looking at him. 'They must have figured out I'm not like them.'  
  
Acting like he didn't notice anything strange, Wonwoo walked away towards Mingyu. He slipped in through the bodies of other people and continued to walk straight, shouting 'Mingyu!' when he saw the other's back. The one being called, turned around and spotted Wonwoo holding an eco bag, a somewhat scared expression on his face.  
  
Feeling something's wrong, Mingyu walked closer and by the time he can see the area behind Wonwoo, he knew right away. "Must be a thief, don't worry about them." The AI comforted the other, if you can call that a comfort anyway, sensing Mingyu's dark aura all of a sudden.  
  
Walking closer, Wonwoo thought that the other's just going to grab his arm and drag him to the next booth, but he thought wrong. Mingyu snaked his arm around Wonwoo's waist, holding him closer but not too much. It still made the other froze, heating up afterwards.  
  
"H-Hey, you're breaking the rules. This is.. too intimate." The AI's wriggling out of Mingyu's grasp but the latter just raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean? It's friendly." Wonwoo stared at him in disbelief. "Are you pertaining to this ecobag? Eco-friendly?"  
  
Mingyu's giggles was heard before smiling gently. "I'm talking about us, Won. Boyfriendly."  
  
Wonwoo thought that he's already malfunctioning due to overheating, but smiled in relief when he heard the human's giggles, clearly distracted, his focus away from the 'thief'.  
  
Mingyu brought the both of them on the fishing game before asking, "Aren't we gonna inform Jihoon and Jeonghan? What if that man's not just a thief?" Wonwoo picked up a token and inserted it while saying, "You're overreacting, Mingyu. It's not like he can kill you in this crowd. Maybe I should though."  
  
His company's eyes light up, saying, "Really? Yeah, you should." Wonwoo smirked, "I will kill you if you don't let go o me in 3 seconds." He added after Mingyu misunderstood. The latter then removed his arm like Wonwoo's waist burned him.  
  
The AI just ignored the absence of warmth radiating from the other and started fishing. "I don't get why some people are allergic to fishes." "Oh? It's because fishes live underwater and you people throw garbages in different bodies of water so fishes eat them innocently. Not knowing it's toxic."  
  
Mingyu nodded knowingly, and watch Wonwoo catch some fishes inside the game, winning some tickets. They continued playing different games, the foods Wonwoo bought disappeared in just a blink of an eye.   
  
They exited the arcade after Mingyu told him that he's getting UTI anytime soon. "That's because you drank MY iced tea as well! That's called karma." But shooed the other away and waited outside the men's comfort room.   
  
Mingyu came back 5 minutes later, Wonwoo saw him hid his phone inside his pocket. "What took you so long? You got some good angle for your selca in there? What about the lighting? Background?" The AI pretended to get annoyed and the other just laughed, flicking Wonwoo's forehead and receiving an 'Ow!' afterwards.   
  
"We should visit the grocery store and buy some foods for the both of us, you eat too much." Wonwoo have this 'Wow, you're blaming me now' face but didn't say anything. Entering the store, Mingyu grabbed a red basket for the items.   
  
On the other side of the mall without the two knowing, someone's been watching them for a while now, a phone in his hand and looked at the screen when his subjects went inside. Staring at the photo he had taken, he mumbled in surprise and disbelief.   
  
"You're back.."


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooh, hello there, Mr. Friendly! <3 This is the longest chapter I've written so far omg, anyway, enjoy reading!

"Can you help me?"  
  
His laptop open, laying on top of his lap and is currently typing something. Mingyu heard a creaking sound when Wonwoo closed the door of his own room, walking towards the kitchen afterwards.  
  
Upon hearing the question, the AI stopped in his tracks and turned around, looking at the other with a confused expression. "What is it? Don't expect me to help you if it involves Mathematics. Being a Math genius isn't a part of my skills as an AI." Wonwoo remarked whilst walking closer to Mingyu, who just stared at him, unamused.  
  
The latter considered hitting Wonwoo's head but doesn't like to get hit two times harder by Jihoon so he quickly threw it away. Shaking his head in mock annoyance, "Just come here and help me! I don't really know what to reply.."  
  
Sitting beside his boyfriend, the AI looked at the screen and saw an open tab of messenger, then a 'ding!' sound indicating that someone messaged or replied. The reply caught Wonwoo's attention. "Mrs. Jung asked me why her daughter's grades are below average.."  
  
Sighs. "..I mean, Hana is always absent in class, either literally or mentally. I already noticed it before so I asked her the reason why and she said that her boyfriend cheated on her, and she's feeling heartbroken." Mingyu finished his blabbering with a head shake while massaging the bridge of his nose, muttering a 'I don't understand kids these days' under his breath.  
  
Wonwoo just nodded slowly, "What did you say to her mom?" before adding. Another sigh escaped Mingyu's lips. "That's what I need your help with. I can'tㅡI don't know how to reply without hurting her nor invading Hana's privacy."  
  
Staring at the screen for less than 10 seconds, eyes unfocused, Wonwoo answered what has been on his mind ever since Mingyu's blabbering.  
  
"Hm.. Tell her to directly speak to her own daughter about what the problems are. Who knows what the REAL reason is? I feel like there are a lot of things bothering Hana in different aspects like her personal life, communication with her family, studies and her jerk of a boyfriend. There are a lot of teenagers who kept everything to themselves, am I wrong?"  
  
After speaking continuously, he turned to a gaping Mingyu, clearly shocked of the other's mind and shook his head slowly, subconsciously. The AI raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh? Didn't know humans have the ability to malfunction as well." with a chuckle.  
  
Shaking his head, again, Mingyu cleared his throat and answered. "I-It's nothing. Just realized that you're good with words." The comment made Wonwoo smirked to hide the strange feeling inside him. "Is that a compliment coming from you? Are you falling in love with me now?"  
  
The other blushed deeply, wanting to lift up the laptop and smack it to Wonwoo but that's too brutal and he hates violence so instead, "S-Shut up, Won. Way to ruin the mood." he said that made the AI laughed.  
  
"Seriously speaking, you should consider telling her what I said. I don't think people can have that kind of behaviour just because of a break-up. I mean, break-ups do hurt too, but I think it's something deeper that will make you drown and breathe for air once you know the beginning of the story and reach the end."  
  
Wonwoo nudged him while smiling, Mingyu mirroring it. "Have you also considered writing a story? Or working as a psychiatrist? Oh, but I think you'll be a wise and good author, I'll be waiting for that, hm?" The human cheekily said whilst wiggling his eyebrows, making the both of them laugh.  
  
Calming down, Wonwoo reminded him, "Don't forget that Mrs. Jung's waiting for your response, Professor Kim." that made Mingyu typed swiftly, afraid that the receiver might be angry right now.  
  
'Ma'am, I think talking to your daughter personally will make her feel at peace and continue her studies with little to no worries at all. Communication is always the key, after all.' then pressed send.  
  
"Thank you so much, Won, really. I owe it to you." Wonwoo just waved it off with a casual smile and added, "No need to thank me, that's what boyfriends should do."  
  
Closing his laptop, now done with the task, Mingyu stood up the same time Wonwoo did. The latter asked, "Let's eat now, shall we? My mind's not processing anything but dinner."  
  
Laughing, Mingyu nodded, agreeing.  
  
  
  
The bell rings, students scrambled out of their respective seats, a usual scenario Mingyu always experience. Shaking his head, he packed his things up and went outside his advisory room.  
  
He was locking the door when someone called him, shouting 'Gyu!', making him turn around. The moment he faced the person, his eyes widen in surprise, not at Soonyoung but at the 'person' way behind him.  
  
Wonwoo is standing near the gate, currently talking to someone on his phone while watching his surroundings. Being absorbed at the sight, Mingyu snapped out of it when Soonyoung poked his side. "Did you run out of energy from too much stress?"  
  
The younger shook his head, pocketing the key. The two started walking towards the gate while Mingyu answered, "No, I'm energized, actually. We can go home now." Soonyoung suddenly halted in his tracks, his answer, or more like his mumbling, surprised the other. "Wonwoo.."  
  
Confused, Mingyu asked his bestfriend a 'What did you say?' to not make it obvious he knew the AI. Soonyoung cleared his throat and said, "Wonwoo. I know him." Mingyu's heartbeats sped up, eyes widening. 'Is that why he knew where I was going?'  
  
。。。。。。。。。  
  
"Soon, I've been calling you for three minutes already! Why aren't you answering earlier?" Mingyu said fastly to a yawning Soonyoung across the phone, who got woken up by the sudden phone call.  
  
"What the heck, Gyu. You called at.. 7 in the morning!? Who in their right mind would call this early?" Soonyoung, completely awake when he saw the time shown in his clock, shouted a question.  
  
The younger felt guilty and embarrassed at the same time, but that's not important right now. "That doesn't matter! Can you get yourself dressed upㅡ" "I am in my clothes though, youㅡ" "Oh shut up, you aren't.. BUT let's go back to the topic Soon, don't distract me." Realizing that they're drifting away from the ACTUAL reason Mingyu called, he continued.  
  
"As I was saying before, can you come with me right now? I need someone to accompany me, Soon-ah, please~" Sighing, Soonyoung asked. "What day is it today?" "Tuesday." "Oh, um yeaㅡNO WHAT!?" The older shouted loudly at 7:05 am, making Mingyu pushed his head away from the speaker.  
  
"Stop shouting, Soon! My poor eardrums.." Calming down, Soonyoung told him. "Sorry, Gyu. You know that I'm the type of friend who will come with you everywhere you go. I've been to a lot of places like the mall downtown, the circusㅡAH! The ferris wheel there is.. circular? Andㅡ"  
  
Groaning, Mingyu spoke with an urgent tone. "Just go straight to the point, Soon!" "I can't go with you, Gyu. It's Tuesday and that means I have to teach the kids today, 8 am actually." 'Oh right', Mingyu slumped his shoulder in disappointment, knowing that he'll come there all alone, but accepted his fate and understood.  
  
"Oh yeah.. Sorry, I forgot. It's okay, Soon-ah! I can go there alone." Soonyoung realized that the other didn't tell him the specific place yet, so he asked.  
  
"Where are you going, anyway? Care to tell me the exact information, location and transportation?" The last part made Mingyu chuckle. "Uhm.. I might have considered your advice?" "I gave you an advice?"  
  
Mingyu, though feeling embarrassed, "Uhm.. About me getting myself.. a boyfriend?"  
  
There's a minute of silence, making the younger feel more nervous, before a scream was heard. "Gyu, my man! I'm so proud of you! Can't believe you're getting laidㅡ" 'WHAT!?' "ㅡdown the couch, cuddling someone sooner."  
  
Mingyu scolded himself silently after thinking 'that', while Soonyoung keeps on rambling about him getting too old and not finding one yet. "So, what's he like? Is he in your level as well?" Excitement present in the older's voice, Mingyu smiled, relieved.  
  
"He's.. Well, we're different in a lot of things but we can make it work..?" "What's with the question, Gyu?" The younger contemplated if he should tell his bestfriend about Wonwoo, or rather, WW 717. He decided to just man up and tell the truth, Soonyoung will find out sooner or later anyway.  
  
"Soon.. please don't freak out, okay?" After hearing a Yes from the other, Mingyu told him, "He's actually.. a humanoid."  
  
Silence means that Soonyoung is already thinking about what the younger said, but instead of freaking out and asking if Mingyu lose his sanity already from all the stress from work and personal life, Soonyoung asked, "Uh.. Is a humanoid a paranoid human? Or a human that fell from the void but survived because someone didn't avoid saving them?"  
  
Mingyu knew he will lose it this time.  
  
"Soon, can I come there as well? Let me justㅡ" A laughing Soonyoung was heard from the other line. "I was just joking. But.. Are you sure about that? I mean, it's still up to you and I'll support your decision if that's what makes you happy."  
  
Smiling genuinely, "I'm still going to the place for more details so.. my decision isn't final yet. I'll inform you, don't worry!" Mingyu answered.  
  
"You better be or I'll come get you there." "What if I don't want to come with you, will you rent one as well?" Mingyu challenged the other. "I told you, I don't have money~" Soonyoung sulked, that made the two laughed together. "Okay okay, I better go now, lover boy. Just tell me about ALL of it, okay?"  
  
Mingyu answered a Yes before a rushing Soonyoung was heard from the other line, and the two bid goodbye to each other.  
  
After the phone call, Mingyu prepared himself. An hour and 30 minutes past of him doing his routine, now all dressed and cleaned up. Thinking back to their conversation, something caught Mingyu's attention.  
  
'How did he know where I'm going?'  
  
。。。。。。。。。  
  
Before Mingyu can ask the older how, the topic of their conversation cleared his throat loudly, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"For someone with long legs, you sure walk slowly and carefully like you're scared to trip on a small piece of pebble." Wonwoo sarcasticly responded, making Soonyoung chuckled and Mingyu pouted.  
  
"He tripped once, seriously. I have a photo." The other two looked at a grinning Soonyoung with different expressions; one with a smirk and the other wanting to wipe off that smirk.  
  
"How can a bestfriend do that?" Mingyu used the bestfriend card on the older, who just shrugged as a response. "You're both my bestfriends though, what should I do?"  
  
A moment of silence passed before Soonyoung spoke up, laughing nervously. "Why are you looking at me like that? I already told you that if someone's close to you, they're my bestfriend too!"  
  
The older cleared the accusation, smiling brightly afterwards. Mingyu just rolled his eyes, adding 'Shut up, Soon. Everyone's your bestfriend'.  
  
A few minutes of small talk, then the three went pass the gate to leave the school for real. Soonyoung's house is on the other direction so they separately went home. Soonyoung away from the scene, Mingyu asked a strangely quiet Wonwoo. "Why did you fetch me up, Won? I didn't tell you to, though."  
  
Sighs. "Do I really have to ask for your permission? I'm your boyfriend anyway, I can do whatever I want." Wonwoo answered with a wink, catching Mingyu off-guard. "Your friend sounds like a very nice friend, Soonyoung was it?"  
  
Wonwoo added, making the human stare at him for a while before saying, "He really is. He's a friendly and kind-hearted person that make people laugh, seriously. He has been always like that." With a proud and gentle smile on his face.  
  
A 'hm' was heard from the other, then the conversation died after that. An uncomfortable silence is present until the two arrived outside Mingyu's house, 10 minutes later. The human couldn't take it anymore and suddenly turned around, making Wonwoo jumped, startled.  
  
"What's your problem?" "What's YOUR problem?" The AI knitted his eyebrows and asked the same question, confused of the sudden accusation. "Would you like to open the door now, Mingyu-ssi?" "Not until you tell me what's on that little mind of yours."  
  
'His stubborn self is on-duty now, huh.' Wonwoo thought but satisfy the other anyways. "Let's just talk inside, you don't want people to see me here."  
  
Happy he won, Mingyu unlocked the door and asked the other. "Didn't I give you the spare key?" Wonwoo walked pass him and entered the house first, answering a 'If I have that key, I wouldn't be stuck with you earlier, dumdum', oblivious to Mingyu's frozen state.  
  
"Dumdum..?"  
  
  
  
"It was Seungmin, huh? Birds of the same feather really flock together."  
  
Jihoon muttered, watching the CCTV footage of the mall Mingyu and Wonwoo went to last week. When Mingyu excused himself to go pee in the comfort room, he called Jeonghan's number to inform the two about the 'thief' following Wonwoo. "Okay, noted. We'll track him down."  
  
So after a week, they got a hold of the camera footage with the help of the mall's owner.  
  
Jeonghan shook his head, annoyed but is controlling himself to calm the other down in case Jihoon do something reckless as breaking the monitor. That laptop is expensive, please don't.  
  
"What do they want from him now? Wonwoo's safe now that he's away from those stinky bastards." Sighing, Jihoon closed the device before he did the same with his eyes. "We can't let them get near him again. Who knows what will happen this time."  
  
Jeonghan hold the younger's now fisted hand, showing comfort and agreement. While the older's rubbing circles against Jihoon's knuckles, the latter's phone rang. Sitting up straight, he grabbed his phone and answered.  
  
"Hello.."  
  
  
  
Locking the door behind him, Mingyu walked closer to Wonwoo, who sat down the couch. The AI then hold his left hand up, adding 'Go change your clothes first' so the human did.  
  
Coming back, he saw Wonwoo watching some historical romance drama on the television. "Care to speak what has been on your mind, making you deep in thoughts?" Mingyu, now wearing a white shirt and black jogger pants, acts like he's one of the lead actors.  
  
Wonwoo look up, unamused at first, until he saw the other's appearance that made him stare longer than intended. Continuing, "Stop that, it doesn't suit you." he said. Mingyu just sat down next to him with a 'huh', "But the clothes suit me, yeah?" he asked with a nudged. The AI heats up after that.  
  
Going straight to the point, "Seriously speaking, tell me what it is, Won." Wonwoo turned his head to look at the screen and answered after a few moments. "Just. You're leaving after tomorrow, right?" "Um, yeah. My mom's birthday is on Sunday so Seungcheol and I will stay there for 4 days. Do you want to come with us?"  
  
A sigh escaped Wonwoo's lips. "Mingyu, we both know it'sㅡ" "ㅡdangerous. Mm-mm, I'm sorry." The AI shook his head No and said, "No need to say sorry, you know?"  
  
"Well, that leaves me with no choice but to bring you back to Jihoon's just for four days." Picking up his phone resting on the table, he was about to touch the telephone icon when he remembered something. "Wait, you didn't answer my question yet, you sneaky."  
  
Just as Wonwoo's about to breathe in relief, the fate's not on his side today. "Don't worry about it, it's nothing serious." But Mingyu's not letting it pass by. "Perhaps, you don't want to go back to Jihoon's or.."  
  
'Or..?' "..you don't want me to go?" Wonwoo's breath hitched that doesn't go unnoticed by the other. Realizing that the time's ticking and Mingyu's getting suspicious, "H-Huh? How can someone be so confident?" The human chuckled, smirking with a glint of mischief and seduction dancing in his eyes.  
  
"You're dodging the question again, Won. Tell me." Deciding to tease Wonwoo, Mingyu came closer to a now malfunctioning AI, racking his brain for an answer, or excuse.  
  
When Wonwoo can feel the other's breath ghosting in his neck, he suddenly stood up and blurted, "It's because I won't finish my mission!" without thinking.  
  
His eyes widen in panic, ready to defend himself and waited for a few seconds, then a minute had passed and no response or any reaction from the human made Wonwoo turned around.  
  
Inspecting Mingyu's face showing no reactions, 'Come on, do something!' Wonwoo screamed inside his head, not wanting this kind of reaction from the other because it's driving him crazy. His cheering for Mingyu came true after a couple of seconds.  
  
"What kind of mission? Did Jeonghan and Jihoon told you to?" The AI decided to be honest and accept all the hurtful words Mingyu might throw at him later. "I.. h-have to make you spill who can help me fix myself completely. Please don't be mad at them, it's not their fault anyway. The mission is about me entirely and I have to seduce you toㅡ"  
  
Mingyu suddenly stood up that made Wonwoo flinched, but the other just unlocked his phone and call someone after. A few rings, "Hello, Mingyu?" Jihoon's voice. "Hello, Jihoon. Can you do me a favor?" Mingyu received a 'Sure' as an answer, continuing. "Can Wonwoo stay over there for 5 days?"  
  
The Ai turned his head towards the human, clearly not expecting this. "Why? Is there something wrong?" Sighing, "I'm actually leaving this town for 4 days starting the next day since I have to go back to the province. Sorry I didn't tell you sooner."  
  
Understanding the situation, Jihoon gladly agreed then added something Wonwoo didn't hear and Mingyu just hummed. After that, the younger ended the call by saying goodbye and 'I'll buy you something, Jihoon, and Jeonghan too! Stop listening!' No accusations, no questions asked.  
  
Wonwoo, who was quietly listening the whole time and unconsciously starting to breathe heavily, spoke up. "Mingyu..? Why didn't you?" The other looked at him straight in the eye, then sighed, approaching the AI. "Won, you really should stop hyperventilating whenever you're nervous."  
  
Mingyu hold Wonwoo's hands and intertwine it with his, giving comfort until the other calms down. Rubbing circles against Wonwoo's knuckles, the human added, "No need to worry about that, Won. I'll tell you whether you seduce me or not."  
  
Wonwoo looked up, heat rushing in his pale face. " I actually forgot about seducing you, though." Happiness and relief rushes through Mingyu's heart; Is it because Wonwoo calmed down already or because Wonwoo's not trying to lure him in his whole stay here and is genuinely having fun?  
  
Mingyu shaked it off and joked, "Oh? You can seduce me anytime now, I'm yours anyway." while wriggling his eyebrows to emphasize then laughed when Wonwoo removed his hands from his and turned away, moving towards the kitchen.  
  
The laughing man removed the tears forming in his eyes, thinking, 'Can't believe I'm getting used to being your boyfriend' before following the other.


	6. Chapter 6

Currently at the kitchen cooking for dinner, the aroma of the soup made Mingyu close his eyes, inhaling it. He ordered Wonwoo to wash the carrots that were sliced already. "What about these onions?" "Oh sorry, yeah. Can you mince it? We need those, too."  
  
Wonwoo nodded his head and grabbed the chopping board and knife whilst Mingyu continued mixing different ingredients; water, chicken breasts, salt, celery and garlic. After peeling the onion, the AI placed it on the board and held the knife in his right hand, positioning it. He sliced the onions horizontally and kind-of messy when Mingyu spoke up.  
  
"Why were asking about Soonyoung earlier, by the way?" The chicken soup he's stirring is continuously boiling when heard the other screamed an 'Ah!', making him turned his head towards Wonwoo. The question made the latter's hand slipped, cutting a small part in his index finger.  
  
Mingyu panicked, turning off the stove. Gently grabbing Wonwoo's right hand, he examined it. "Is it too painful, Won?" Wonwoo shook his head No, taking a closer look of his finger, a red line now visible on it.  
  
'Must be a wire connected to my body. Why is it painful then?' The AI thought silently, before answering Mingyu. "Uh, not really. It's strange.. why are your eyes watery?" Mingyu opened the cabinet containing the medical supplies given by Jeonghan and started covering the red part. "H-Huh? Must be because of the onions. What's strange? Are you feeling something different?"  
  
"That's what makes it strange." Mingyu stopped moving for a while, the adhesive bandage sticking out and ready to be used, but continued after a heartbeat. "Humanoids feel humans emotions as well, the negative ones and the positives too. You said so yourself." The AI remembered, nodding slowly before thanking Mingyu.  
  
"Why did you turn off the stove already? What do you need the onions for then?" Putting back the supplies where it came from, "Don't worry, the taste of the soup won't be affected by the absence of it." Mingyu answered an excuse, making the other knit his eyebrows.  
  
"You just started cooking, though. It's not fully-cooked yet! Go turn it on, I'll continue this." Slapping Mingyu's right arm, Wonwoo turned to the onions. After twisting the knob of the stove, "Pretty sure you'll stab me if I ask you to go sit down and not help so, just tell me if it hurts." Mingyu commented, making the AI laugh.  
  
"I can't even use a knife properly so you're safe." But successfully minced the onions after a few seconds, giving the output to Mingyu. Adding it to the pot, the latter poured the content to a transparent bowl, 30 minutes later. Holding the bowl in his hands, Mingyu brought it to the dining table after ordering his boyfriend to grab some plate and utensils. The two then sit down and started eating.  
  
"How come you didn't chose to become a chef?" Wonwoo asked, slurping the soup in his own bowl. Mingyu smiled sheepishly, feeling bashful all of a sudden but covered it with a question. "Is that an indirect way of praising my cooking and seducing me at the same time?"  
  
Wonwoo rolled his eyes with a snort, "Don't be so full of yourself, Mr. It's my indirect way of asking why you chose to become an art teacher." The other sighed but apologized quickly after realizing that he's in front of the food. "My mom asked me the same question.."  
  
The AI honestly spoke up, feeling alarmed and protective of the human. "I'll be here listening, Mingyu." And so, the latter trusted him and spill it. "My parents told me I'll get nothing by pursuing my dream of becoming an artist so, I.. chose to become an art teacher because I can paint and draw and at the same time, teach other people my knowledge about it."  
  
Mingyu felt small under Wonwoo's focused gaze on him. Sighing, the latter wondered. "I don't get why people think artists won't get something big from drawing and painting. They can sell their masterpieces, right? And at the same time, have fun and express their emotions. Make it make sense."  
  
The hint of darkness from Wonwoo's tone made Mingyu sit up straight and laughed nervously. "No need to be so serious about it, Won. I'm an adult now and I can make decisions on my own. I already told my parents about it and.. y-yeah, they were disappointed about it but accepted." He stuttered when Wonwoo raised an eyebrow.  
  
"So this is the reason why you were just window-shopping outside the art store." With another nod, Mingyu continued eating a few seconds before Wonwoo.  
  
By the time 5 minutes before 8 arrived, the AI asked Mingyu the question he'd been wanting to ask before. "Are you waiting for someone's message? You keep on glancing on your phone since I've met you."  
  
Mingyu, who was doing the action once again, contemplated if he should tell Wonwoo about 'him'. In the end, he decided to speak about it and started the story when Wonwoo nodded after he asked him, "Do you want to know?"  
  
"Hm.. we were complete strangers actually, we just started texting each other when Soonyoung dared me to text his number since his friend is 'bored'. But, I don't use my old number anymore." The AI nodded to show that he's listening, feeling something strange on his stomach. "And then, I find him interesting. You guys have the same personalities, actually."  
  
This piqued Wonwoo's interest and tilted his head that Mingyu found cute, and answered, "You both love cats, books and jokes, seriously. You both have the same nicknames too, Won."  
  
The AI squinted his eyes at Mingyu, examining the latter. Coming to a conclusion, "Sounds like you like him." the heavy feeling in his stomach lingering. 'I'm full already, huh.'  
  
"Hm? Oh.. I can't really say that. He's happy now, with someone else." The revelation made Wonwoo's stomach drop more, not helping at all. "Is that so? What did you do when you found out?"  
  
Mingyu just smiled, "Nothing? I mean, they know each other longer than I know him." Wonwoo mumbled a 'Mm' before asking carefully, wanting to know more but doesn't like to open a wound.  
  
"What about his partner? How are they like?" The questions seem like a wrong choice, actually. Mingyu stopped chewing a chicken piece inside his mouth, tightening his hold on the fork in his left hand. Wonwoo stuttered a 'Sorry, you don't have to answer that, you know..', but the other just shook his head to tell the AI it's okay.  
  
Pausing for a couple of seconds and taking a deep breath, he answered with hesitance and heavy feeling. "His boyfriend's the typical playboy, womanizer and heartbreaker. Not to ruin his reputation on you but.. he really is. I just hope that he did something good for Won, though. Even the littlest things a boyfriend should do."  


Taking a drink of a glass of water Wonwoo poured for him, he said a 'thank you' before continuing. "I don't even know what his boyfriend looks like, even Won himself." The AI's eyes widen a fraction, confusion etching in his face. "What? You talk to a complete stranger without even knowing his face? Aren't you afraid something bad might happen to you? Isn't he Soonyoung's friend? Why didn't you ask him for Won's picture?"  
  
Wonwoo bombarded the human with questions the latter couldn't keep up but the last two, so he answered, "I did ask Soon about that but, unfortunately, he doesn't have any photo of him. Said Won doesn't like taking photos of himself."  
  
'Won can be an open book sometimes, but a Mystery in genre.' Mingyu thought silently, making his eyes go unfocused, reminiscing something important.  
  
。。。。。。。。。  
  
Currently 7:45 pm, Mingyu messaged 'Won' after he finished eating his dinner. 'It's been a long time.'  
  
'Heyo Wo~n! Have you eaten dinner already?'  
  
He recived a reply, a minute later.  
  
  
Won: why? are you going to take me out of my castle, flynn rider?  
  
Ming: just send me the address, your highness  
Ming: i will drag you out of there  
Ming: oh vut please dont hit me with a pan  
Ming: but on a second thought,, u dont know how to cook so no pan in there then  
  
Won: i can block your no. anytime soon  
  
Ming: nOOO  
Ming: you didnt anzwer my question yet sir  
  
Won: no, i haven't yet  
  
Ming: what? it's almost 8 already, just go eat dinner first.  
  
Won: not in the mood, sorry  
  
  
Mingyu felt like he really should ask for the other's address and comfort him, hug him and tuck him in bed but he dismissed the idea and replied.  
  
  
Ming: care tobtell me whats on that cute minf of yours?  
  
Won: just.. remember the moon-shaped pendant i told you before? the one my mom gave me?  
  
Ming: oh yea,, what happened?  
  
  
He can feel the other contemplating whether to be honest or not, so he received a reply a minute later.  
  
  
Won: it's missing. the thief was caught already but  
Won: she sold it to someone she don't know so, i can't find it  
Won: i don't want my mom to know i lost it so i lied to her  
Won: can you help me?  
  
  
Mingyu agreed immediately, and told Won to eat his dinner already before he track the other's phone and know its address. He then received a laughing cat emoji and a 'thank you' afterwards that made Mingyu smiled unconsciously.  
  
。。。。。。。。。  
  
Mm. "I like to meet him someday, we'll like each other." "Oh no, please. I can't have two Wons at the same time, the jokes would be too much to handle." Grabbing the fork in his plate, Wonwoo pointed it to a laughing Mingyu, raising his hands up.  
  
"You can pick one anytime, though. Don't be selfish." The human's laughter died down after hearing Wonwoo's, supposedly, playful statement, making him stare at the AI for a couple of seconds. The other oblivious to Mingyu's intense stare, who just continued eating after he put down the fork.  
  
To distract his mind away from the unexpected stress, he continued the interrupted story. "It's been a year since I last chatted with him. We never met each other personally so.. I don't know his address at all. When the time comes that I find the pendant, I can't give it to him personally. Messages is the only connection we have." The story teller sighed like he's telling a tragic story.  
  
Nodding his head, Wonwoo's mind stopped functioning and just focus on the 'pendant' part of the story. "Pendant?" "Um, yeah. Oh! Maybe you can help us find it too? Here."  
  
Unlocking his phone and opening his gallery, Mingyu found the photo of a moon-shaped pendant with a ruby, pearl and amethyst on it, less than a minute later and showed it to Wonwoo.  
  
"He asked me to find it since it was bought by a stranger he never met and.." Mingyu's voice faded in the background against Wonwoo's ears, who was now feeling like his head was breaking into two.  
  
Then, another scenario played inside his head, giving him another head ache and 'heart' ache.  
  
  
  
"Huh? It's in my wallet, it doesn't suit my look today so I won't wear it." "Are you sick? It looks great on you in any occasions though."  
  
Bullets of sweats are forming. Nervous emotions. Heavy breathing. Hands slightly shaking.  
  
"Tell me."  
  
  
  
"Won. Won? Hey, what's wrong?" Someone's shaking him that made Wonwoo snapped out of the scene and go back to present.  
  
"Don't tell me it's just nothing if it's making you massage your temples unconsciously." Mingyu pointed out while pouring water in the other's glass. The human actually rushed and stood up from his chair out of worry when Wonwoo suddenly shut his eyes and breathe heavily, bringing them in his state.  
  
"My head just felt heavy all of a sudden, nothing serious. Maybe I should tell Jihoon and Jeonghan to check my head." "Go take a rest and recharge yourself, Won. I'll clean this up, no buts! You're damaged as well." The human stopped him quickly, pointing at Wonwoo's index finger that was cut earlier for a blackmail."  
  
With no bickering and fighting, the AI nodded, making Mingyu satisfied he won, again. Saying their 'good night' and 'sleep well' with each other like any other nights, Wonwoo walked towards his room and entered.  
  
Washing the dishes carefully, he successfully cleaned everything up without breaking any plates and glasses. After drying his hands and grabbing his phone he left in the living room, Mingyu turned off the lights to go take a rest.  
  
Passing by Wonwoo's room, he stared at the door for a while, mumbling a small 'Good night, Won' before walking towards his room, this time for real, and went inside. Throwing himself on the bed with a grunt, Mingyu faced the ceiling when his head hits the pillow, making him deep in thought, thinking about earlier.  
  
"Is this right, Won? It's been a year but.. why does it feel like I'm letting you go when in the first place.. we never really let each other in?" He mumbled sadly, their past conversations playing back on his mind, torturing him with guilt.  
  
Changing his thought to Wonwoo and remembering that he's leaving the next day and only have tomorrow to spend with his boyfriend, Mingyu opened his phone to ask someone for advice. Clicking Soonyoung's name on his contact, 'Soon, hope you're still awake! What do you think will make Wonwoo have fun? I'm taking my boyfriend out tomorrow before leaving.'  
  
Sending the message with unease, Mingyu sighed and waited for the older's response, resting his eyes for a while without knowing that the AI isn't recharging yet and is staring at the framed photo of a silhouette of a man sitting on top of a hill, looking up above the moonless sky but its light shining down on him. The same photo he saw the first time he went in his room.  
  
Realizing that his mind's flying somewhere again and it's already getting late, he laid down the bed and closed his eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The moon-shaped pendant is the one I inserted on this story's mood board, the one on the first chapter ^^ Stay tuned for the next chapter!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like the story's progress is going so fast so.. a filler chapter for you guys! >__< This is actually not planned so I don't know why I did this either ㅠㅠ

"Oh? Were you crying?"  
  
Mingyu asked a sleepy Wonwoo who rubbed his eyes tiredly, his nose with a touch of red on it. The AI just yawned and stretched his limbs with cracking sounds.  
  
Snobbing the human, Wonwoo walked towards the table, the smell of toast and coffee steaming made his 'stomach' growl shamelessly. Mingyu just sighed and sit down, repeating the question.  
  
"Won, were you crying earlier? What's wrong?" while taking a bite of his home-made toast. Looking up, Wonwoo gulped down the food first before smiling. "What do you mean? I didn't. The weather's colder than usual today so I guess my body's reacting to it." He explained casually.  
  
"Is that so?" Mingyu asked, reaching his left hand towards the other's forehead. "You're kind of heating up? Why didn't you wear a sweatshirt?" He scolded Wonwoo, the latter's food now disappeared.  
  
Sighs. "I only have sweaters and long sleeves, Mingyu. Didn't know the weather would be too cold but I can manage with this, don't frown." Wonwoo added after noticing the human's knitted eyebrow, slowly forming in his forehead. Realizing that he can't do anything about it, Mingyu dropped the subject as of now before gulping down his coffee, and realized his conversation with Soonyoung last night.  
  
"Oh, yeah! We're going somewhere today, so go prepare yourself." Wonwoo, who was just about to unlock his phone to entertain himself with some videos of funny cats online, raised his head from the device and asked, "Why? Aren't you abusing the permission you asked from Jihoon too much?"  
  
"Don't worry about that! Since I'm leaving tomorrow, we're going to spend the rest of this day together so I think they won't mind about that." Mingyu explained to a half-convinced, half-sleepy AI, who just answered a 'Aren't we always together?' that made the human pout.  
  
"Okay, okay. How old are you again?" Before standing up, leaving a now sulking Mingyu who stood up as well, shouting "I can pout whenever I want, Won! This doesn't have anything to do with my age!" to a retreating Wonwoo back to his room, who just shouted back a 'Whatever you say, kiddo!' as a response.  
  
Turning back to their empty dishes, Mingyu's left eyebrow rose up, not because of the fact that Wonwoo finished his coffee up to its extent with no excess found, but because the AI forgot his phone. Shaking his head with a sigh, Mingyu decided to clean the mugs and plates first before bringing the phone back to its owner.  
  
Washing his mug using a foam, "Why did Soonyoung receive a couple's pass anyway?" he mumbled, his mind drifting back to their conversation last night. Meanwhile, Wonwoo entered his room to get ready and prepare himself for an expected long day today. 'He doesn't like taking a rest, huh', before entering his bathroom.  
  
After almost 10 minutes, Mingyu knocked at the AI's room's door to give back Wonwoo's phone and make him wear the human's sweatshirt, complimenting himself for remembering that. Knocking for 4 times already, "Won, it's me! Open theㅡ" he stopped calling for Wonwoo's name when the latter suddenly opened the door.  
  
There, in his full glory with no shirt on and a towel wrapped around his waist, stands Wonwoo whilst holding the door knob and raised his eyebrow at Mingyu for a silent question of 'What is it?'. The human's eyes widen in shock; either out of surprise the door suddenly opened when he was about to turn the knob, or because of Wonwoo's confidence to show his naked torso while water drips down.  
  
Breaking the silence and tension that linger for 15 seconds, the AI asked, "What do you want, Mingyu?" verbally this time. The receiver of fhe question took his gaze away from the other to take a breather before clearing his throat, "Um.. just wanted to give you back your phone, I think you forgot." and successfully stabilize his voice.  
  
Stretching his arm out, Mingyu hold the AI's phone and the latter gladly took it. Feeling something heavy in his other arm and realizing, "Here. Wear this, too." Mingyu gave his sweatshirt, making Wonwoo confused. "Why? I was about to wear my long sleevesㅡ" "Just take this. I have to go dress myself, don't wanna be late. Bye!" The AI stopped talking when Mingyu rushed talking before leaving, pushing his cloth to Wonwoo.  
  
Looking at the maroon sweatshirt, "Late? Dress himself? I thought he changed already..?" he mumbled, remembering that Mingyu's clothes was a white shirt when they ate breakfast to a black jacket now. Shrugging his shoulders, Wonwoo closed the door and get dressed.  
  
Meanwhile, Mingyu went back to his own room, sitting on his bed after. Checking on his phone to look at the time, "7:30? What a good excuse, Mingyu." before deciding to chat Soonyoung for a while, knowing his bestfriend's awake at this moment. Starting with a good morning text, "Why do you have a couple's pass anyway?" he added.  
  
A 'ding!' then was heard after a few seconds, "Yunwon gave it to me, a raffle prize he won, he said", says the reply. Mingyu just nodded subconsciously whilst typing his reply. "Good for him to win a raffle prize, that's hard. Is it a new friend of yours though?" and received a 'No, he's my childhood friend'.  
  
'How come you don't introduce him to me', is what Mingyu wanted to type but that would just sound accusing and too possesive so he just thanked the older for the giftㅡSoonyoung saidㅡand bid him goodbye, after seeing the time indicating 7:55 am.  
  
Standing up straight, Mingyu walked towards the door to open it and exit. By the time he reached the living room, he saw a now prepared and dressed Wonwoo, compared to earlier, and is looking at a mirror hung on the wall while arranging his hair, eyebrows creased, pout formed. 'Cute.'  
  
Walking closely, "Is this okay? It looks strange to me.." Mingyu heard the AI mumbled before sighing, obviously struggling. "Let me help."  
  
After hearing the suggestion, Wonwoo visibly flinched, looks like he didn't see Mingyu approaching when he was focused on getting his hair neat. Thankfully, the gel container didn't slip in his hand. "O-Oh, when did you come here?" The human just get the container from Wonwoo's left hand and closed the gap between them, to take a closer look.  
  
Mingyu brushed the bangs out of Wonwoo's eyes, "Are these strands itching your face?" before he ask, making the AI shook his head No. "Is it poking your eyes?" Another headshake. "Do you want to trim it?" And another one. "Why do you need to style and gel your hair then?" Another shake of Wonwoo's head is what Mingyu received, before the AI realize and smiled sheepishly.  
  
"Nothing. Just wanted to try something new and look decent for once?" Wonwoo answered and shrugged his shoulders casually. The other squeezed some gel from the container before placing it to the nearest table, and made Wonwoo face him, starting to style the AI's still disarray hair.  
  
Hmm. "What should we do with this?" Mingyu mumbled before throwing a glance at his boyfriend, planning something. Gently rubbing his palms together to spread the gel evenly, he placed it on Wonwoo's hair and massage it first, combing with his fingers after.  
  
Brushing his palms to the shape Mingyu wanted, he blurted a 'Okay! Here we go!' in a too energetic way, looks like he's satisfied with the output. Wonwoo then turn around and face the mirror, before widening his eyes comically, the same time Mingyu laugh out loud, holding his stomach.  
  
"KIM MINGYU!"  
  
The AI, now heating up for a different reason, shouted in a mix of disbelief and irritation, "What did you do? I thought you'll help me! Traitor." before folding his arms in front of his chest. 'Let's see if you can still laugh like that later. Huh' Mingyu stopped laughing like a madman after he choked in his own spit, clearing his throat afterwards.  
  
"Okay okay, sorry. It looks cute on you, though." He answered, adding aㅡsupposedlyㅡcute pout for emphasis. It didn't work. "You. Just. Made. My. Hair. Turn. To. A. Mohawk. How is that cute, Mingyu-ssi?" Wonwoo stated through his gritted teeth, a smileㅡclose to a smirkㅡstill present on his lips.  
  
After regaining his composure and steady breathing, Mingyu approached the other and smile genuinely, nervous now. "Okay, here. Wash your hair first, Won, it hardened already. Sorry for the trouble." The AI rolled his eyes but obeyed nonetheless. After a couple of seconds, Wonwoo then came back with a towel in his hand, drying his hair.  
  
Setting the towel aside, he positioned himself infront of the mirror and raise an eyebrow at Mingyu. "Care to help me FOR REAL this time? I thought we're getting LATE?" The human just ruffled the other's head as an answer, since he didn't know what he said earlier either. He received another glare though, that made Mingyu chuckle.  
  
Taking a good look of the AI, he grabbed the comb resting on the table and started brushing Wonwoo's hair. "You know what? Let's just keep it this way, it suits you better." "Are you sure?" "Hmm? Don't ask me, I need YOUR answer on this, it's your own so you have the right to change it."  
  
Wonwoo then stare at his appearance on the mirror and scrutinize himself, satisfied. "Thanks. Oh! We should go now. Where are we going again..?" Turning to Mingyu again, the AI raised an eyebrow with a question. Mingyu just smiled in return and grab the house key inside his pocket, before holding Wonwoo's wrist to drag the both of them outside. Don't want Wonwoo to smack him for holding his hand so better be safe.  
  
Arriving outside, the sunlight welcomes them making the two male squint their eyes, Mingyu locked the front door after. "About the place, we're just going to the mall and buy stuffs. I'll get you clothes." He added after turning around and walked beside Wonwoo. The latter, "I don't need new clothes, you'll just waste your money." scolded his boyfriend for doing something common for couples.  
  
"Please? Just a thank you for helping me, making me happy and being my boyfriend. No buts! Let's go~!" Mingyu said in a rush after the AI knit his eyebrow all of a sudden, but shake it off before the two started walking towards the mall.  
  
  
  
"PLEASE! I'm so tired, let's just go with this and pay." After arriving at their destination, the two decided to buy clothes already and the situation right now is pretty hecticㅡand frustrating at Wonwoo's side, who's currently trying on different shirts and long sleeves with designs, not his typeㅡafter Mingyu pick for him and ordered him to try it.  
  
"You just tried 4 clothes only, Won! How are you tired already?" With a sigh, Mingyu stood up from the bench in front of the fitting room and fix the collar folded weirdly on the blue-colored button-down striped long sleeves Wonwoo's currently wearing.  
  
"Seriously, I don't like this type of clothing, I feel.. uncomfy and unusual. Plus, I am not letting you pay all of it." Wonwoo whispered audibly. "Don't you want to try something new though?" "I want to, but I don't know where am I suppose to wear this? I'm not going anywhere, anyway." Mingyu's hand, that was patting down the collar just a second ago, stopped moving after the last sentence.  
  
Understanding why, "I'm not allowed to go outside anytime I want, right? And, I like spending time inside so.." the AI continued. The human just smiled at him and patted the area for the last time before adding, "So.. let's pay for the sweatshirts, t-shirts and sweater then?" and grab the hanged clothes before walking towards the cashier.  
  
"I didn't put it on yet, though? What if it doesn't fit me?" "Don't worry, it will. Large size." Mingyu answered the last part, cutting off Wonwoo's question. "Jeonghan told me your measurement so, yeah." The AI then nodded his head, understanding. After that, the two paid for the clothes. Of course, the scenario doesn't go on without the touch of bickering so they divided the bill.  
  
Successfully paying, the two walked towards the restaurant Soonyoung adviced.  
  
Currently 11:30 am and fortunately not occupied yet, only a handful of people came since it's a new space, the couple walked straight towards the counter to order. Checking the menu, "What the heck, Mingyu? The foods here are crazy expensive, let's move." Wonwoo whispered silently in shocked and confusion. The other just took out his wallet and asked the cashier.  
  
"Um.." Mingyu started, getting embarrass. "Good morning. Min Yunwon actually won the raffle for.. a discount pass here, right? We're actually friends and he gave it to me." He continued, showing the pass Soonyoung gave to him a long time ago, making Wonwoo confused. The cashier raised an perfectly-shaped eyebrow at him, not quite believing. "Are you really a couple?" She challenged the two, moving forward.  
  
After the question, the AI understood now. 'A couple pass, then', he thought wih a quiet chuckle. Mingyu then scratched his nape, not knowing how to prove it to her. "Uh.. I mean, we're together." "Huh? Aren't you guys just friends? That's the vibe you're giving me." She commented with a somewhat trained, scripted yawn, mocking the couple. Wonwoo guessed she's just trolling the both of them and wanted a show. 'I see.. okay then.'  
  
Meanwhile, "How am I suppose to do this?" Mingyu mumbled with a sigh, before looking around to search for a new place, clearly giving up. Sensing the frustration and embarrassment out of the human, Wonwoo helped him. Intertwining his slender fingers with the other before tiptoeing to reach his desired height, planting a kiss on Mingyu's right cheek. The latter then froze, his breath got caught in his throat and stopped for a second while his heartbeat sped up, not expecting THIS from Wonwoo.  
  
The AI turned his head towards the cashier to see her reaction and looks like someone's enjoying the view. Looking at the couple with sparkling eyes and amusement dancing in her hazel eyes whilst keeping her squeal in, "Okay, sir. Don't worry about the discount, it's free for you. Enjoy your meal!" she said, before asking for their order.  
  
It took them a minute saying their choices, before walking towards an empty table, sitting across each other afterwards. Wonwoo took out his phone to check for the current time while Mingyu arranged their things under the table, already calm, thankfully. Stealing a glance at his companion, his heartbeat raced again, a tinge of pink coming back on his face.  
  
'What is wrong with you? Calm down!' It doesn't work anyways.  
  
  
  
Enjoying his bag of potato chips, Mingyu took out some issue from the table in front of them, currently emotional. After dining in, the two played some games and left the mall afterwards, now back to their home. With the television open and a romance, mystery, drama movie playing, the two are watching, focused.  
  
Noticing the human silently removing the tears threatening to fall, Wonwoo chuckled, "Just let it go and wipe it later, Mingyu. You won't enjoy the rest of the scenes if you keep doing that, such a baby." he remarked, teasingly. "Shut up, Won. You wiped something from your eye earlier too, stop teasing me, softie."  
  
"I was getting sleepy so I rubbed my eyes to lessen it." "Does that work?" And the movie was long forgotten because of their short attention span, the sounds of talking playing in the background. The topic went from Wonwoo's technique to lessen his sleepy state, to the AI's love for cats all of a sudden.  
  
"Their adorable, soft, kind and smart. Basically the best type of pet every person should have." He said, but was disapproved by Mingyu. "Dogs are much better. Hardworking, energetic, playful, friendly and loyal to their owner. They basically won't leave you alone and lonely, you know?" "That's my problem. I like spending time alone, remember? Plus, they're too hyperactive, my energy can't keep up."  
  
Mingyu pouted his lips as a reaction, "That's because you're not moving around! Try exercising sometimes, it might help boosting up your energy." Wonwoo just snorted, "I prefer taking care of the cats. Besides, this house has a puppy already, don't want another one." Knitting his eyebrows out of confusion, then blurting a 'Ah!' after understanding, Mingyu jokingly glared at the other, not knowing if that was a compliment or an exaggerated comment.  
  
"I'm not! Why does everyone thinks I'm a puppy?" And that's when the bickering started after Wonwoo added a 'That's because you are!', the movie completely forgotten until it ended. The jokes subsided as well when 9:35 pm arrived, the two decided to call it a night and bid each other good nights. "Sleep well, Won! Oh, but don't sleep too long. Don't know why cats get tired without doing extreme stuffs."  
  
"Shush yourself. Since you still have TOO much energy from you, better pack your things now since you're leaving tomorrow. Don't know why dogs pester everyone anytime they want." Wonwoo remarked with a grin, waving his hand after and was about to walk away, "Oh! Good luck guarding the house tonight, by the way." before running towards his room for real with a laugh, successfully dodging the pillow Mingyu threw.  
  
'Such a tease.' He thought, shaking his head with a smile plastered on his face. Grabbing his phone to message Seungcheol, he typed a 'What time will you fetch me up, hyung?' after he send an emoji of a bear saying hello. After receiving a reply of '8' without anything else much to his disappointment, he replied a 'Okay hyung, thank you! Continue whatever you're doing'.   
  
He then stood up and walked towards his own room and locked the door, to prepare his baggage with 4-days worth of necessities for tomorrow's trip.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here's chapter 8, guyseu! thank you for reading aaa lemme just say that wonwoo = rule obeyer, rule lover

It's still a miracle how he can hear the birds chirpping early in the morning when they live at the city, full of noises of different people talking, honking of the cars and the fast footsteps of workers jogging towards their offices.  
  
The male woke up feeling nothing at all, just like any other day. Groaning while stretching his limbs out, he sat up straight and looked at the clock, indicating 7:05 am. "Let's survive for another day, okay?" He mumbled, cheering himself numbly.  
  
Standing up, he started to do his routine of going inside his bathroom, washing his face, gargling some mouthwash he saw inside the cabinet and checked his appearance in the wall mirror.  
  
Dark, rounded eyebags under his sharp eyes and milk-colored skin getting paler each day, looking tired and sick. Sighing, he forced himself to look away and left the bathroom.  
  
When he went back inside his room, he caught a glimpse of a paper with lots of folds, obviously crumpled and looking kind-of old like it was written a few months ago, on top of his bedside table.  
  
Picking up the paper and unfolding it, he read it again.  
  
  
To my dearest son,  
  
It has been a week since I last talk to you and I miss you so much. I want to talk to you again and ask you a lot of questions. Are you feeling happy and healthy? Have you been eating well and taking the vitamins I gave you? How's work and love life? And when you answer all of it, I want you to be honest with me and take it all out, stop keeping it to yourself, son.  
  
But, I've been lying to you all this time, too. I actually went to my doctor and received the result of my x-ray test. The test result shows that I have a lung cancer, stage 3, and I don't have much time left in this world, in your side. When you receive and read this letter, just know that I am reading it from above as well. I have decided to tell you this for you not to worry and cry over me, okay? Change and Death are the only constant thing in this world, and I want you to accept it too, even if it hurts me leaving you.  
  
You have been fighting your own battles and worries all alone, closing yourself off the world and pretending that you are someone else. I have been noticing that ever since a few months ago, and I want to do somehing about it, but I can't. Because I am too weak and fragile, I am not enough for you. It hurts me to see that you are hurting and had been knocked down a million times already, right in front of my eyes. I'm sorry for everything, son. For me doing nothing and let you keep it all in.  
  
If I have more time and chance to prove my love for you, I am and is willing to sacrifice every single thing to make you happy and come back to your old self. But it is too late now, isn't it? I am such a failure for a mother and you deserve someone that will comfort and support you, and act like a true mother I didn't portray enough.  
  
When the time comes that I leave this world and watch over you, always remember that I love you and will always love you from the bottom of my heart. If you ever felt like wanting a motherly hug and kiss, just close your eyes and place your hand on top of your chest, I am always right there.  
  
I already know about your pendant and I am not mad at you, even for a little. But, I don't want you to tire yourself out just because of something I gave you, something replaceable. You don't have to worry about that too much and find it, my love. You are much more important than the pendant I gave you.  
  
Promise me you won't find it again, okay? Thank you for everything, Won. I love you.  
  
Mom  
  
  
Just like any other day, the only thing that can make Wonwoo's emotionless heart ache with pain and sorrow is his Mom's letter before God took her back. The male read it, over and over again, feeling the same agony each day, missing the warmth from the only lady that loved him wholely.  
  
Holding the paper near his heart, he closes his eyes and the tears spilled out like a dam, wanting to break out from his heart.  
  
When he can feel the tears damped his shirt too much, he opened his eyes and unconsciously look at the calendar. 'July 17, 2019'  
  
It has been more than a year ever since he read the letter to the point that he memorized every single words, and that means a lot of torturing days, weeks and months had passed since he started reading the letter, everyday.  
  
Getting tired of crying his heart out, he wiped his tears and regained his composure, inhaling and exhaling slowly before mumbling the promise he kept saying these past months.  
  
"I promise this time, Mom. I promise."  
  
  
  
Wonwoo opened his eyes quickly whilst his chest keeps rising and falling due to heavy breathing, awake by the sudden dream. Another scenario he keeps seeing just like any other day and night that keeps on bugging him.  
  
Looking at the calendar, the same position as the one he saw on that dream, indicating March 13, 2020. Ever since he came inside this room, he can feel a wave of nostalgia hitting him. 'It all felt so real..'  
  
Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he moved his focus towards the clock on top of the bedside table, 7:15 am. He then heard someone's knock on the door, opening it after the third knock.  
  
He finally saw the other, looking down with a 'Should I just come back later?' face that got erased when he felt someone standing in front of him.  
  
"Oh! Good morning, Won. Did I wake you up?" Mingyu greeted, and got confused when Wonwoo asked a "Mingyu?" at him. Checking his back to see if someone's right there, the human chuckled nervously. "Stop scaring me, Won. Of course it's Mingyu, have you forgotten already?" He tried to joke about it but Wonwoo didn't laugh, making him ruffle the other's already disarray hair.  
  
Swatting Mingyu's hand away, Wonwoo greeted a late 'Good Morning' and walked directly to the bathroom after realizing he didn't wash his face yet. The other shouted a 'I already prepared breakfast for us!' when the door of the bathroom closed. Performing his daily routine, the AI left the bathdoom afterwards, walking to the dining room to eat breakfast and satisfy his hunger.  
  
Mingyu cooked pancakes for a light breakfast, and 2 cups of coffee; a black one and an iced one. The AI then sit down across Mingyu, grabbing a fork to get a small slice of his food and eat it.  
  
Gulping the pancake with his black coffee, Mingyu ordered the other for later. "Jeonghan will fetch you up at 8:30 am and by that time, I left already. Just take the spare key with you and lock all the doors and windows, okay? I want the both of us to come back in this house full of its contents."  
  
Expecring Wonwoo to fight him and throw a sarcastic comment, or laugh even just for a little, the AI just nodded and continued stuffing food in his mouth. Just like that, Mingyu knew something's wrong, leaving his heart with worry and sadness.  
  
He was about to open up a conversation about it when his phone notified him, a message from Seungcheol saying "I'm leaving my house now, Gyu! Better be ready or else.." so he just dropped it and stood up, stacking their now empty plates on top of each other and brought it to the sink, decided to wash it. '30 minutes is a lot of time left, let's do this.'  
  
Meanwhile, Wonwoo's packing up his things to not be a burden for Jeonghan later. His clothes for the past month are lesser than he expected anyway, that's an easier task for him. Grabbing his luggage, he insert all of the basic necessities inside and zipped it close. That's just 20 minutes for him.  
  
Looking at his room one last time before he went for a while, Wonwoo smiled and carry his luggage, before opening the door and walked towards the living room where Mingyu is.  
  
Hearing footsteps approaching, Mingyu looked away from the window and turned around, observing Wonwoo placed his luggage on the floor next to the couch. "Uh, Won.." The human started, opening up a conversation.  
  
"Mingyu, take care in there, hm? Inform me when something bad happens, or just whenever you missed hearing my voice." Wonwoo outstarted him, making Mingyu's words linger in the air. The last part made the latter chuckle both in amusement and surprise.  
  
Mingyu walked closer to the AI, who expected the human to smirk and flirt back but he obviously thought wrong. Mingyu raised both of his hands and cupped Wonwoo's face, making the AI freeze and heat up at the same time. Science made it possible.  
  
"W-What are you doing? Stop that." Wonwoo whispered, afraid that his lips might touch Mingyu's palm if he move too much. The other didn't remove it though, keeping Wonwoo's face in place. "Tell me what's wrong and be honest, Won. I can't leave you feeling like this. I won't."  
  
Understanding what's gotten into him, Wonwoo sighed and hold the human's hand, slowly removing it. "It's nothing, Gyu. Just thinking about my dream earlier." Mingyu's eyes flashed with something he didn't catch, and the human he said, "Tell me all about it."  
  
So Wonwoo didㅡwas about to, actuallyㅡnot until they heard a sound of a car honking, interrupting them. Mingyu groaned in slight annoyance and sighed, "That means it will be the topic of our first convo then?" He successfully made the AI smile and laugh this time, his heavy heart getting lighter each sound.  
  
Knocking sounds afterwards, Mingyu went near the window and looked outside to check who it is and yeah, his service is here. Sighs. "Wait for a minute, Seungcheol-hyung!"  
  
After hearing an 'okay!', he faced Wonwoo and smiled with eyes sad in emotion, not bothering to hide it from the other. "So, you'll be fine, I guess?"  
  
"Mm-mm. I'll be staying here just for another 30 minutes, don't cry, mom." Mingyu acted annoyed and march towards a slightly nervous Wonwoo, ready for a punishment, when Mingyu flicked his forehead gently.  
  
"You should stop flicking my forehead, Gyu! I'll tell this to Jeonghan later, huh." while rubbing the part where it hurts. Mingyu just laughed at the action and comment, knowing Wonwoo, he won't tell it to Jeonghan and will just add it to the rules himself. A few awkward seconds passed until Mingyu decided to suck it up and do it, so he did.  
  
He grabbed Wonwoo's wrist and pulled him in for a hug all of a sudden, catching the AI off-guard and not knowing what to do, his arms hanging awkwardly on his sides. When Mingyu rubbed circles on his back and whispered 'I will miss you', that's the time when Wonwoo relaxed and reciprocate the hug.  
  
Breaking the hug, Wonwoo missed the warmth coming from the other but blushed all over again when Mingyu kissed him on the forehead, his lips lingering a little longer than intended, whispering another 'I will miss you' afterwards.  
  
"Was that too intimate and against the rules?" Mingyu tried to lighten the sudden tension hanging uncomfortably in the air. Wonwoo just asked another question as an answer, "Was that worth 4 days of my absence by your side?"  
  
The human blushed, a red color rushing to his tanned face whilst pretending to think for a while. "Hmm.. that's just for one hour though? Should we do something more?" Then another wave of blush came back to Wonwoo's pale face and ears, slapping the now laughing flirt's arm.  
  
"You coming with us to our province is worth more than 4 days, Won. I really want you there." The confession made Wonwoo stopped giving bruises to the human, smiling genuinely after. "But I can't. Just send me photos you'll take in there, that will do. Oh! Tell your mom I said 'Happy Birthday', too."  
  
"Gyu, hurry up! The sun is burning me alive!" Seungcheol shouted from the other side of the door, a signal for them to stop talking because more than a minute had passed already. Nodding slowly with a sigh, Mingyu grabbed his baggage and waved Wonwoo goodbye, opening the door.  
  
He saw a smirking Seungcheol, wearing a yellow-chalked-colored shirt and black shorts, staring at him with a hint of malice in his eyes. "I hope 5 minutes is enough for the both of you?" After hearing that, Mingyu had the urge to smack his hyung using his baggage but dismissed the idea and just laugh, bashful.  
  
"Shut up, hyung. I'm not like that." The older just laughed loudly, and Mingyu's considering the idea once again but he just turned around and face Wonwoo, staring back at him. "So uh, see you soon, Won?"  
  
The AI just nod and smile to not make Mingyu worry and kidnap him to come with them towards their province. "We've been saying goodbyes to each other since earlier, just go away Gyu." The latter sighed for the nth time, giving up. "Why are you pestering me away from my own house, huh?"  
  
Wonwoo just made a 'shoo' movement in his hands when Seungcheol cleared his throat and peek from Mingyu's back.  
  
Facing the older human, Wonwoo said, "Can you drag him inside your car now or else, his mom won't see him at her own day nor receive any gifts from her own son." Mingyu tightened his grip on his baggage and looked away for an attempt to hide his blush, saying "I'll just tell my mom it's my boyfriend's fault."  
  
'It's your fault anyway! How can we call each other boyfriends if you can't agree with my decisions?!'  
  
An unknown voice screamed inside the AI's head, blaming him for whatever it is. He unconsciously held his forehead in his right hand, wincing, but Mingyu didn't see any of it when he turned around.  
  
Wonwoo stared at the two humans' retreating backs, walking towards Seungcheol's car. When the older went around the car and opened the door near the driver's seat, Mingyu went inside the passenger's and closed it.  
  
Looking back, he waved Wonwoo goodbye, for real, and the AI mirrored the action whilst Seungcheol's starting the engine before driving away.  
  
When the car gotten smaller from Wonwoo's vision, he entered the house and waited for his creator, who arrived earlier than 8:30 am. Expecting Jeonghan to show up, Jihoon went outside his car and Wonwoo got confused.  
  
"Hello, Jihoon. I thought Jeonghan's fetching me up?" Jihoon just shook his head and sighed, "He can't. Got A LOT of things stucked on him." then made a disgusted face the AI didn't quite understand why.  
  
Carrying his luggage after locking the front door, the two started to approach Jihoon's car and the latter drove away when Wonwoo finished putting on his seatbelt.  
  
Meanwhile, "You like him, no?" Seungcheol asked his company a question quite obvious in the older's point of view, to start a conversation inside Seungcheol's car. Mingyu then answer after a few seconds, "Of course I like him, he's my boyfriend." smiling afterwards. The other shook his head slowly and mockingly, a smile forming as well. "You know that's not what I was pertaining to. Plus, not all people that are inside a relationship feels the same."  
  
This time, Mingyu take a deep breath and released it slowly while moving his gaze outside, tapping his index finger on his lap in the process. Mumbling, "I like him, huh? Can't believe I'll fall again." a small, tender smile appearing in his face, making Seungcheol mirror the action, happy for him.  
  
After a heartbeat, the older remembered something he'd been thinking since earlier and blurted the thought, making Mingyu turn his head towards him, and confusion is all he can think about after hearing the statement. "You told me your boyfriend's from a humanoid renting site, right?"  
  
"He looks exactly like him."


	9. Chapter 9

The sun shines up above the sky at 11:30 am, its UV rays spreading out towards the province of 'Cara Sevtin', says the card at the side of the road Seungcheol and Mingyu are driving to.  
  
After an almost 4-hour long drive from the city to their hometown, they finally came back after a year. Stopping outside the Choi household first, the two went outside the car and stretched out their limbs whilst cracking sounds were heard.  
  
Outside, the cool, fresh breeze hits Mingyu's tanned skin while entering his lungs with clean air. Cows mooing, chickens cackling, and dogs barking in the distance made noises as well. There are farmers walking with their carabaos towards the field and the trees around them are still standing tall and sturdy, some of them fell already due to the strong winds of typhoons or because of illegal loggers themselves.  
  
The Choi's house is still the same as before; its walls painted in a light blue color, the bushes beside the house were trimmed, and the pathway towards the door is made up of cobblestones. 'Good old days', Mingyu reminisced. He didn't notice the newest addition to the family though, so it barked loudly, making the male flinched in surprise.  
  
Mingyu was about to approach the golden retriever when Seungcheol called him. Coming inside, Seungcheol's mom hugged him immediately. He missed this motherly hug so much he nearly cried.  
  
"Oh Mingyu, my son. It's so good to see you again. I'm still kinda disappointed you didn't come last Christmas and joined us." Mrs. Choi stated and pretended to get mad but can't stop the smile forming in her face.  
  
Mingyu just mumbled a small 'I'm so sorry, auntie' and closed his eyes, suddenly feeling tired and sleepy because of the woman's embrace. Patting Mingyu's back to check if the male really fell asleep, they broke the hug and his aunt patted his head.  
  
Bending his knees to lower his height, "You're so tall now, Gyu. Can't believe you're just an adorable, tiny boy a few months ago." he heard Mrs. Choi confessed in amazement and amusement, with a touch of longing she can't baby his nephew anymore. Mingyu then pouted, "Isn't that too much, auntie? How can I grow this much in just a span of a few months?" he joked, genuinely curious on the other hand, but made the woman laugh anyways.  
  
"You're still the same Mingyu I know. Thank you." She smiled genuinely, eyes with a tinge of sadness. Mr. Choi then came from the backyard, holding a hammer in his right hand that he placed at the table after he saw that the two boys had arrived already.  
  
He hugged his own son first, who pouted when his father squished his cheeks. "Dad.. you really should stop making me cute." Let's just say that he got a little flick in the forehead after.  
  
Walking towards Mingyu with open arms, the younger did the same and hug him. "Welcome back, son." Mr. Choi's three words made Mingyu smile, his canines showing. "I miss seeing your homemade Christmas lanterns, uncle." The older just laughed and shook his head.  
  
"No worries, son. You can see them again this Christmas, you both should come back and celebrate here." He said with a soft smile plastered on his wrinkled face, that made him look kind and warm despite his intimidating face. Seungcheol's features must be from him.  
  
They decided to eat lunch from the meantime since it's lunchttime already and everyone's hungry. The four of them sat on each chairs surrounding the circular table. After placing the foods, more like feast, for lunchㅡsauteed vegetables, chicken lollipops, and seafood soup plus gelatin desserts and mango pudding for dessertsㅡthey started eating with a light atmosphere.  
  
Mr. Choi then started the conversation. "How's life in the city, boys?" The two younger ones then answered, Seungcheol first after gulping his food. "Work has been stressful for the both of us but since it's March already, school's ending soon, Dad! March is miracle, ah~ thank goodness for breaks." And suddenly received a hit on the side from his mom after he stretched out his arms, a sign for him to sit properly.  
  
Mingyu agreed at the comment, finally getting a rest after all the stress. They talked about the kids at school, their plans for the upcoming summer break and each boys' love life that is centered on Mingyu.  
  
"Really? How come we didn't know about that, young man?" Mrs. Choi raised an eyebrow, questioning him. 'Another hotseat topic, please save me', Mingyu prayed silently. Between Mr. and Mrs. Choi, the latter can be kind-of like a reporter that will ask you tons of questions to get a good scoop out of you. The only difference is that she won't talk behind your back, she's a mother after all.  
  
Gulping before he answer, "Sorry for not telling you, auntie. A lot of stuffs are happening lately so I can't really keep up. But I-I'll make it up to you, I promise! Don't worry about me." Mingyu rushed a 'but' when the woman shows worry on her expression. Sighing, she just nodded and said a 'Bring him here this Christmas too' and Mingyu nodded, smiling brightly.  
  
"Are you going to your own house after this?" Mr. Choi asked, drinking water afterwards. Mingyu and Seungcheol nodded at the same time, already finished eating. "Oh! Before I forget, can you bring the wooden clock your father needs? Maybe he's coming to your mom's birthday too, I was fixing it earlier.."  
  
The old man's voice faded in the air after his wife tapped his left arm, signalling him to stop talking after sensing Mingyu's tense state. Realizing his fault, Mr. Choi sighed heavily and stood up, walking towards Mingyu before patting his head to show comfort. The younger relaxed under the touch.  
  
"You deserve to be happy, son. Don't keep it all in." before going to the backyard with his hammer. Mrs. Choi too, then stood up and pile the plates on top of each other, carrying it to the sink, giving Mingyu some space to calm down and destress himself. Seungcheol whispered a 'I'll be waiting in the car, Gyu' with a soft smile.  
  
Sighing with a dejected expression, "Dad.. I hope you'll come tomorrow." Mingyu mumbled quietly, too quiet to the point that if someone's near him even for a 5 cm distance, they won't catch what he said. After sitting and thinking for the whole 5 minutes, Mingyu stood up, ready for another journey. Walking towards the kitchen, he saw Mrs. Choi putting the plates and utensils back to its original place and said his goodbye, hugging her after.  
  
"Be careful, Gyu. Always remember that we love you and if you need someone to spill it all out, you are welcome here." The woman reminded him, making his heart feel at peace even for a while. Like a signal, the back door opens and Mr. Choi came in with a wooden clock in his old, callused hands. Placing it on the floor, he hugged Mingyu tightly.  
  
"Focus on your pesent, Gyu. Your future needs you and is waiting for you." With all the love and support Choi family is giving for him, Mingyu's tears wanted to come out but scolded himself internally. "I'm so sorry for ruining this day, uncle, auntie." Saying his sorry whilst moving his gaze to look at Mrs. Choi, he receives a 'No, shush yourself. You didn't, okay?' and a flick in the forehead.  
  
To mask his emotional state, Mingyu broke the hug and placed his right hand above his heart, nodding like he's promising, carrying the clock with him.  
  
Walking outside the house and towards the car and opening the passenger's seat's door, Mingyu looked back and saw Seungcheol with his parents, laughing with something Mr. Choi said. Seungcheol came back from his car when he noticed that he left the car key inside the house.  
  
'He's really getting old.' Mingyu chuckled, trying to push away the jealousy his heart is selfishly feeling. The driver then came back and went inside the driver's seat, Mingyu followed suit towards the passenger's. The two boys waved the olders goodbye, driving away.  
  
Closing his eyes and feeling his energy's going down already, the younger muttered, "Uncle's intellectual mind always amazes me. How come you didn't get anything from that, hyung?"  
  
Seungcheol considered pushing the break all of a sudden to make the other throw himself forward jokingly buy dismissed because that's dangerous. So instead, he answered, "We're blood-related anyway. I just have to find it in my blood cells one by one, I guess? It's just playing hide-and-seek with me."  
  
He successfully made Mingyu smile anyway, still worth it insulting his self.  
  
  
  
"Wonwoo! I miss you!" Jeonghan shouted to a busy Wonwoo, watching something on his phone. Spoiler alert, that something is about cats.  
  
It's currently 12:45pm, the AI came back to Jihoon's house 4 hours ago but the oldest human didn't saw them come in since he's busy, sleeping. "Mm, good afternoon, Jeonghan." "Have you eaten lunch yet?" Wonwoo looked up and shook his head, making Jeonghan widen his eyes.  
  
"What are you doing then? Let's eat. Your energy level's going down, Won." Grabbing the other's wrist, Jeonghan dragged Wonwoo out of his room and towards the dining room, where he saw Jihoon texting someone on the phone.  
  
"JI!" "WHATㅡis it, Jeonghan? Just because you get some sleep doesn't mean you have to waste it." Jihoon locked his phone immediately after slightly bouncing in his seat due to flinching, startled, almost falling down the chair. Smirking, "Is he coming here?", Jeonghan asked knowingly, a specific person in his head.  
  
Jihoon knitted his eyebrows for an attempt to shake it off and act clueless, before sighing, giving up. "1 pm actually. You guys planned this, didn't you?" The oldest just cackled and sat down and Wonwoo did the same, now feeling the nervousness swallowing him, not knowing how to start a conversation with any of them.  
  
The three started eating the food already placed on the table by another humanoid.  
  
In the middle of chewing then gulping his food, Wonwoo gathered up the courage and asked a question he had been wanting to. "Did you insert someone else's memory in my CPU?"  
  
The AI stared at his creators, expecting an answer immediately. But, Jeonghan spat and choke on his own, before drinking the water that was given by XU 247, who spilled the liquids carelessly, and Jihoon wanted to laugh because of second-hand embarrassment if it's just any normal day but kept it and sighed.  
  
"Why'd you ask, Won? Is there something bothering you?" The younger asked, whilst Jeonghan shooed the robot away, calming himself down. "I keep seeing random scenarios these past few days but.. I think they're all connected to each other. All of them feels familiar.."  
  
Jeonghan, this time regained his composure already, asked another one. "Do you want them to leave you?"  
  
Wonwoo not answering the question made the two humans held their breaths, unexpected tension present in the air.  
  
'Whether it may be a traumatizing and negative experience, or the happier ones, memories complete people and make them.'  
  
After a few seconds of thinking carefully, Wonwoo's answer made Jeonghan and Jihoon look at each other, not expecting it at all. "No, actually."  
  
'I wonder what it feels like to be human.'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ohohohoho wonwoo wants to be human.. :((


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> look who we got here!!! ^^

"Oh wow, nothing changed huh?"  
  
Jihoon started, greeting the guest who arrived 30 minutes after the indicated time. Soonyoung just pouted, "Don't be like that! I miss you too, Ji."  
  
The younger just rolled his eyes, opening the door widely to let the other come in. The two walked towards the living room where Jeonghan and Wonwoo are watching some entertainment show without showing any signs that they're laughing.  
  
"The comedians here are just fooling around, making a fool of themselves. Is this how you train your poker face, Ji?" Jeonghan asked an approaching Jihoon with company, getting bored. The younger just turned off the television and went to his room, coming back with his laptop and find a good movie to watchㅡanother marvel one, yes.  
  
He then asked a silent Wonwoo, thinking on how small the world is if Soonyoung is friends with these two as well. "Won, what do you want to watch?" Wonwoo made a small 'hmm' sound and answered a 'I don't really know marvel that much, sorry' with a timid smile.  
  
Jihoon reassured the AI with a gentle smile and a head shake, before looking back at the screen to pick 'Avengers: Infinity War' and started watching along with Wonwoo, raising the volume up for better experience and sound effects. Hearing that the movie has started already, Jeonghan and Soonyoung stopped bickering which is better, Pizza or Burger.  
  
After a few minutes of the heroes fighting and throwing lines at one another, Soonyoung started throwing comments here and there in the middle of the movie, "I don't get why Batman and Superman are fighting just because of one woman", making Jihoon shushed him by hitting the older in the face using a pillow.  
  
"If you don't shut your trap, I will throw this couch on you." He added while shooting daggers to Soonyoung. Jeonghan side-commented a 'Isn't that a different movie, though?' and Wonwoo just laughed at the sight, the latter thinking that it must be a common scene if Soonyoung's just smiling at Jihoon.  
  
Upon hearing the AI's deep octave laugh, "Aye, Wonwoo! It's good to see you again!", Soonyoung greeted Wonwoo, who was seated from the other side of the couch, Jihoon and Jeonghan in the middle space, the latter stood up and went inside the kitchen to refill the chips on the bowl.  
  
"Soonyoung, right? What a small world, huh." Wonwoo asked, amazed of himself to sound so casual in front of the other. Soonyoung nodded, happy to see Wonwoo talking to him. "Yeah! Jihoon's patience is smaller though."  
  
Wonwoo raised an eyebrow, his lips curving upward, before he jokingly asked a starting-to-get-more-annoyed Jihoon, silently sitting in the middle. "Did you hear that, Ji? Would you let him go his time?"  
  
Soonyoung pretended to wipe 'tears' in his eyes, "Won, how could you! I trusted you!", making the humanoid scrunched his nose, laughing. Jihoon on the other hand, who was trying to focus on the movie, faced the older with a smile close to a smirk before asking, "What about me? Do you trust me this time?"  
  
Soonyoung gulped audibly, moving backwards when Jihoon get closer while Wonwoo just watch them, thinking if he should push Jihoon forward and let fate decide what will happen next.  
  
When Jihoon reached the gap he wanted and Soonyoung's already distracted, he head-locked the other, tackling him. The AI sighed, clearly relieved that he didn't continue whatever he is planning. He doesn't want to get his head experience difficulties and errors later.  
  
Soonyoung wriggled his way out of the younger's grasp, fixing his dishiveled hair. "Stop doing that, Ji! Can't think of something new?"  
  
Jihoon snorted in disbelief. "Why did you stop moving if you're used to it then?" The older pretended to think for a while. "Hm.. maybe you have decided to surprise me with something this time?"  
  
Jeonghan, who was watching from the kitchen holding a bowl now full of chips, just shook his head with a soft smile plastered on his face. 'I miss this so much.' He decided to go back to the three, afraid that this time, Jihoon will really surprise Soonyoung and the latter might wake up lying in a hospital bed.  
  
They saw the oldest approaching, making Jihoon let go of a sulking Soonyoung, and played the movie again before someone decided to interrupt him earlier. Jeonghan sat back down next to Wonwoo, trusting the other two humans not to shoot daggers at each other for the rest of the movie.  
  
Like a miracle, the movie ended somewhat peacefully. After that, they went their separate ways to do something.  
  
Jihoon stayed, opening a file containing something private and important. Jeonghan grabbed the empty bowl towards the sink and called someone on his phone afterwards. He just left it there, really. Soonyoung walked straight to Jihoon's backyard to entertain his self, and Wonwoo went towards the comfort room to do his business.  
  
After peeing due to drinking too much cola before washing his hands, the AI then decided to join Soonyoung outside and inhale some fresh air, if the city's having its luck today that is. Arriving in the backyard, he saw Soonyoung sitting on a hammock, holding a dandelion he randomly plucked out on the grass below him.  
  
Wonwoo approached the other, feeling timid now that they're the only ones in the area at the moment. When Soonyoung heard footsteps walking closer to him, he raise his head to look up from the flower and smiled, patting the space beside him.  
  
The other gladly accept the invitation and sit down, making Soonyoung bounce for a little due to the AI's weight, but felt comfortable nonetheless. 'There's something about this man. He must be a special person to whoever's memory I'm stuck with', Wonwoo thought silently.  
  
"For you." Soonyoung suddenly blurted, making Wonwoo swiftly turn his head towards the human, surprised. "Huh? Sorry, I don't want Jihoon to torture me inside his head later."  
  
The comment made Soonyoung cackle, his eyes disappearingㅡwell, that's possible if you're Soonyoung. Laughing sounds toning down, "What are you talking about? You told me to confess to him." then a staring contest happened for 5 seconds before the AI asked, "I? Told you what?"  
  
"Hm? I said, Boo told me to confess to Jihoon, so yeah I did." Wonwoo muttered an 'Ah' as an understanding, 'feeling' happy and strangely proud of Soonyoung for doing something brave as confessing.  
  
He decided to tease the other by saying, "So, how did it go, Mr. Lover Boy?" with a nudge. The answer, or rather, the action the human made was unexpected. A sigh escaped Soonyoung's lips whilst twisting the little flower between his thumb and index finger.  
  
"Jihoon told me that he'll give me an answer when.. things started to get back to normal again." Soonyoung explained, his gaze forward, unfocused. Confusion is the only thing Wonwoo can understand right now, and was about to speak when the other continued.  
  
"But.. things are slowly coming back, Won. I'm so happy he's in a better and safer place now. So happy I can cry right now." Soonyoung ended his words with a genuine smile, eyes now focused on Wonwoo, softening. The latter returned the action, something inside his chest aching in pure joy.  
  
"Can you tell me more about him? If it's okay with you." And so, Soonyoung started telling him a story using a tender, mellow voice like he's narrating a kid some bedtime story, so gentle.  
  
  
  
Back inside the Lee household, after calling his boyfriend on the phone, Jeonghan came back to the living room and sat down next to a busy Jihoon working with his laptop.  
  
"Did you find something, Ji?" The older asked, making Jihoon shook his head and sighed heavily. "We're getting in there but it's been almost a year since that stupid accident. Until now, I can't find the exact one. Argh."  
  
Sensing the sudden stress and annoyance from the other, Jeonghan stopped Jihoon's hand from moving by holding it gently and said, "Don't worry about it too much, okay? I'll help you. Soonyoung will help you too, remember? We'll find out real soon."  
  
Relaxing, Jihoon sighed in relief and nodded, thankful. Jeonghan then mirrored the action and stated, "Okay, no more drama and let's continue our task, I'll help. How did you figure out tracking someone's phone number anyway?"  
  
"I.. searched?" The younger started by saying the obvious, "..I don't really have any interest in this but I have to learn it so.." Jeonghan just nodded, thinking how the technology and the internet world made life faster and easier. While the older's mind is flying somewhere else, Jihoon blurted something that made Jeonghan look at him.  
  
"It has been a few months since we tried, right?" Confused, Jeonghan tilted his head and the younger sighed, nodding slowly.  
  
"Can you try calling that number again?"  
  
  
  
"The four of us, along with Jeonghan and Jihoon, are close friends actually, like really close with each other. The two of us met each other since secondary school and yeah, there's just this connection between us that made us bestfriends." Soonyoung reminisced, thinking how strong their friendship is if they reach this far.  
  
Continuing, "He's one of the most introverted person I've ever met, like seriously. He find watching two lizards staring at each other on the ceiling interesting." Wonwoo raised an eyebrow to mask his laughter while the human snickered. "Okay no, that's too much. Next." Making the both of them fill the air with delightful sounds of laughter.  
  
"People don't want to get close to him because he looks cold but he's a soft-hearted person. He cried once when he saw a wounded stray kitten walking limply in the street." The AI wanted to argue with the other for laughing, but dismissed it and nodded to show that he's listening.  
  
"Mm! He's a book nerd too! And loves listening to serene musics, ballads specifically. He said those kinds of songs made him feel at peace and this world needs it." Soonyoung enthusiastically added.  
  
Wonwoo thought that something is wrong, like the broken pieces from the random scenarios inside his head are getting connected to each other. All of what the other said are so strange, so familiar. Before he got to speak even just a one letter, Soonyoung spoke up, tone in his voice shifting.  
  
Taking a deep breath, "But.. bad stuffs happened two years ago.." Sighs. ".. that made us lose him."  
  
Feeling sympathy, worry and sadness all at the same time, Wonwoo subconsciously held Soonyoung's hand gently, as if the latter's so fragile he might break apart right now.  
  
Lifting his gaze from looking down his feet, Soonyoung saw the soft, sad look Wonwoo is giving so he tried to lighten the mood. "Stop looking at me like that, Won. You're making me cry.." with an exaggerated pout. The other jokingly glared and pushed the human's face gently, "Stop that. You look like a prematured duck."  
  
The insult made Soonyoung's eyes widen, yes, and teased the other even more by pouting again. "That hurts me, Won. I'll cry for real this time." and successfully made Wonwoo chuckle.  
  
Shaking his head, "Don't try to think too much about it, Won. I think he's having a happy life right now, though. He deserved it, very much." With a strange emotion lingering in Soonyoung's eyes the other couldn't figure out, plus the gentle smile you'll give to someone so dear to you.  
  
Wonwoo just made a 'Mm-mm' sound, not knowing whether he should be satisfied with the story or not, but accepted anyway. With this kind of atmosphere, "I didn't expect for me to sound so casual around you."  
  
"Oh? That's what I want others to get whenever they're talking to me." with a proud and happy smile. The AI wanted to say something about him seeing the other in his past lifeㅡWonwoo guessedㅡwhen someone interrupted them.  
  
A 'meow' sound was heard made by a cat walking slowly with small footsteps, sleepy movements. Seeing a cat personally and not just by watching online videos, Wonwoo's eyes sparkled in fondness and amusement.  
  
Soonyoung called the cat with a 'meow' added with a hand gesture, then shouted a name you'll randomly name a cat, "Ming~!"  
  
The catㅡcovered in white fur, a black spot at the back of its ear and some scattered on its body, plus those piercing yellow eyesㅡobeyed and walked closer to the two, stopping beside Soonyoung's right foot, making the latter pet the spot behind its ear.  
  
Chuckling, "Someone's in a good mood today, huh.. can't believe he let me pet him today." The human said, amusement present in his voice, before turning to face the AI. Scanning the look in the latter's face made Soonyoung knit his eyebrows.  
  
"Won? Is there something wrong?" He asked, worried that something is bugging Wonwoo. The latter shook his head to reassure the other and added, "No, I'm fine. I was thinking of adopting a cat someday." that satisfied Soonyoung and picked up the cat carefully, afraid it might throw tantrums anytime soon.  
  
Putting the cat in Wonwoo's lap, the latter started petting it whilst thinking of the real reason of his quiet state earlier.  
  
  
  
"Who's Ming? Your new lover?" A brunette male, looks like he's in his 20s, said to another male older than him by a year, with black hair, cold eyes and sharp jawline.  
  
The brunette asked, malice present in his voice. The two are in a 1-year relationship, and are currently at the amusement park for their date. Inside that 1 year, their dates are less than a handful because of the same two reasons; it's either the brunette is busy working or he's resting because of 'that' work.  
  
The older is looking at the park's map on his phone when a 'ding!' sound was heard, a notification popped up, and a message from 'Ming' was shown. The reason why his boyfriend asked.  
  
"He's a friend of mine." He answered, continuing his mission to find a ride. The brunette snorted and abruptly stopped, the older did the same, almost tripping. "Don't lie to me. Why would a friend ask you in the middle of our date?"  
  
The other knitted his eyebrows, not making any sense of the question. 'Why would I tell him about the date?' is what he wanted to retort back but instead, "Don't worry about thaㅡ"  
  
"What do you mean, huh? All this time, I've been working for us but you're just flirting with someone else? Fine." before pressing the call button on his phone, walking away from the older and the scene he just created that made spectators stare at them, before talking to someone unknown.  
  
Anger boiled inside him, who is starting to breathe heavily. Calming himself down, he walked towards the exit and dialed someone on his phone. His hands are shaking, now hyperventilating without him knowing. The one who received the call answered, then ended the phone call after 5 seconds.  
  
"Take me home.."  
  
  
  
"Won!"  
  
Wonwoo snapped out of it when Soonyoung shook him in he shoulders, worry etched in the human's features. "Calm down, Won. Breathe slowly and don't worry. Let's go inside, the heat is affecting you as well."  
  
The human guided him back inside the house. The cat that was once laying in Wonwoo's lap is nowhere to be seen. Guiding the AI to the chair in the kitchen, Soonyoung quickly approach the fridge and pour some water to give it to the other.  
  
After gulping it and sighing heavily, Wonwoo thanked him. Soonyoung then sighed in relief the same time Jeonghan and Jihoon came inside the area. "What happened?" The oldest asked, mirroring Jihoon's troubled expression. "He's drowning in his own thoughts earlier when we were talking outside.." The informant sighed.  
  
Jihoon approached Wonwoo with a gentle smile, worry still not disappearing. "Won, whatever's happening right now inside your head, don't let it eat you up, okay? You can tell us if you want to, we'll always listen to you."  
  
The comment made the AI's 'heart' ache in happiness, now breathing heavily and smiled, thankful of the three. Jeonghan then commanded him to went inside his room and take a rest for as long as he needed and if he disobey, another no-more-wifi blackmail for him. Wonwoo almost pouted but hold it in and walked towards his room, defeated.  
  
When the sound of a door being closed was heard, the three stared at each other and Jeonghan opened up the conversation. "The memories are affecting him slowly.."  
  
"Should we tell him about the last wish?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So if you're confused about 'Ming' as a random cat name, you'll know it if you're from the Philippines >< it's very common!


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> let's take a look at mingyu's side, shall we? ^^

"Mingyu dear, help me out here!"  
  
Two days had passed since Mingyu and Seungcheol's arrival to 'Cara Sevtin' and the reason of their journey to go back to their province is finally hereㅡMingyu's mom's birthday.  
  
The house's interior is simple but somewhat elegant. Beige-painted walls with family photos plastered on the wall, the wooden-designed floor tiles contrasting it. The decorations are not too much; just a 2 handful of pink and blue balloons tied on chairs covered with white cloth, party streamers on the ceiling and some pop music blasting on the speaker.  
  
The Kim household is currently on a blast. Visitorsㅡclose friends and familyㅡare talking to each other to catch up on things they all missed out. With all the different topics; about work, family, personal problems and if they still consider eating a food past its expiration date, the birthday party will sure be interesting. Yeah, nothing much.  
  
Mrs. Kim is currently on the kitchen transferring the foods to a long table in the living room, where the visitors at. The menuㅡHomemade Carbonara, Mac N' Cheese, Roasted chicken, some good Wine while Juice boxes for the little kiddos, a Cake just like any other birthday and some dessertsㅡadded to the life of the party, or the life itself.  
  
The party started 1 in the afternoon, Mingyu helped his mom whilst joining the music by singing 'My Way' out loud, the karaoke started already. Approaching the living room, he saw his childhood friends, Seungcheol and Seri, sitting around a circular table at the far end near the wall whilst talking to each other. He placed the cupcakes on the table first before walking towards the two when Seungcheol called him.  
  
Smiling, "Oh? It's a surprise to see you here, Seri? Especially now that you're successful." Mingyu greeted a Seri clothed in a pink off-the-shoulder dress. The latter raised her eyebrows, the corner of her lips curving up in a smile. "I wouldn't miss something big as this, you know? Auntie just turned a golden year today!"  
  
The three laughed, adding noises to the loud party on-going. Seungcheol spoke up, "I miss this, though. We can't really talk that much anymore because of our busy lives." with a sigh.  
  
"You stopped talking to me when you found someone else!" Seri jokingly accused Seungcheol with a giggle, but the tone made it somewhat real. The two male looked at each other briefly, probably thinking the same thing but the older answered immediately to not make it suspicious.  
  
Rubbing his nape, "Oh, yeah? I didn't inform the both of you about it because I don't want you to keep asking and teasing me about him." The revelation made Mingyu's left eyebrow raise, saying a 'So I was right all along!' with a glare.  
  
"Enough about me. What about Seri? Is it okay for you to be here without wearing any mask or shades to cover up your identity? I mean, you're popular now." Seungcheol asked, and the female just answered with a cool demeanor and 'It's totally fine! I mean, our province is not that aware this world has social media, you know? Maybe they don't know.'  
  
Adding another question to continue the conversation they miss, "Did you come here all alone?" The two males focused on the other, noticing the slight change in her demeanor. "No, my boyfriend's here too, actually. You'll meet him later." She smiled sweetly, her rosy cheeks going up, emphasizing the blush on she used.  
  
When the female saw the birthday woman, Mingyu's mom, entering the living room, she suddenly stood up and grabbed her gift before walking towards Mrs. Kim.  
  
Without her noticing, Mingyu dropped the 'smile' on his face and stood up as well, to grab a plate and eat something for his stomach. Seungcheol then followed suit with a hushed question. "Can you still hang in there, Gyu?" The younger just smiled at him for reassurance, scooping some carbonara into his plate then grabbed a roasted chicken leg, looking juicy. 'You're the only one that can make me happy right now', he silently confessed.  
  
He then heard his mom shouted a 'Okay ladies and gentlemen! Please sit down on your own seats because we are starting soon!' that made the two male walked back to their spots the same time Seri came back from the outside.  
  
Sitting down, Mingyu continued to eat his food when someone, so familiar by face, came inside. 'Isn't he..?' But his brain stopped workin the moment his mom talk, the name made him lose his appetite, wanting to spit it out harshly due to its sudden bitter taste in a metaphorical way, before dropping his fork to the ground.  
  
"Oh, Kino! Come over here and find your spot, son. Enjoy the party, okay?" Mrs. Kim said to a man named Kino, dressed in a light blue jeans and simple white shirt, who walked towards their direction and took a seat next to Seri.  
  
When the female planted a kiss on the newest arrival's cheek the same time Mingyu lift up his head from getting the forkㅡnow dirtyㅡfrom the ground, Seri turned to her childhood friends and said, "Cheol, Gyu, this is my boyfriend Kino. Babe, these are my friends, Seungcheol and Mingyu."  
  
Seungcheol and Kino exchanged 'Nice to meet you's and hand shakes for a friendly manner. When Kino turned to Mingyu, who's staring at him with different emotions hiding behind his eyes, he smiled and held his hand for another shake.  
  
Mingyu then slowly focused his attention to the other's hand and just stared at it for a few seconds before smiling, taking Kino's hand for a shake.  
  
"It's nice to finally meet you, Mingyu." This caught the receiver's attention and look at the other in the eye. Smirking this time, he said, "It's been a very long time since I last saw you. Kino, is it? I've seen you somewhere before.. hm?" Mingyu muttered with malice and intention present in his tone, dark and dangerous, whilst tightening the grip on Kino's hand on instincts.  
  
Feeling the negative aura surrounding their table with no warning at all, Seungcheol cut into the conversation, asking "You guys know each other?" with genuine confusion and concern. Upon hearing the question, Mingyu removed his left hand from the other's and answered "Doesn't matter, as long as he can remember everything, right?" before raising an eyebrow at Kino with a smirk.  
  
The latter just pretend he didn't hear anything and answered the first question Mingyu asked earlier. "Oh? Those people might have been my fans and copied my face." He joked, making his girlfriend and Seungcheol laugh at the comment, while Mingyu just snorted a laughㅡhe hopedㅡto not ruin Kino's dream of becoming a clown or comedian, he guessed. 'With that face like his, he'll fit the standars with no makeups needed.'  
  
The conversation ended the same time Mrs. Kim started the program with games for the children. The birthday woman then called volunteers that will join the game, as well as the guardians. When Kino stood up and went to his nephew, Mingyu asked Seri quietly to not make any ruckus, not knowing his mom's currently calling his name.  
  
"When did the two of you started dating each other?" The question caught the other off-guard, but smiled nonetheless. "Can I tell you about that later? I'm watching the kidsㅡ" "Really? Last time I know, you hated them."  
  
The malice in Mingyu's tone made Seri's facade crumple, smile fading into an irritated smirk. "What's your deal, Mingyu? Spit it out." The latter just snorted and answered, "Oh nothing. You can tell me the whole story later, Seri. Even the affair ones. The wrong ones."  
  
Seri's eyes widen in surprise, emotiond are mixed. Mingyu then added, continuing, "You know how much I hate affairs, Cho Seri." whilst gritting his teeth in pure anger and disagreement, before regretting it afterwards when his mom stopped beside their table, tensing.  
  
Sensing the sudden uncomfortable tension lingering in the air, Seungcheol, who was silently listening, cleared his throat before interrupting, "Uhm.. Gyu's been watching a lot of dramas lately so.. he's still talking like the lead actor, yeah. I'm so sorry about that, auntie." with a timid smile.  
  
Mrs. Kim just tightly smiled back and nodded, her gaze travelling from Seungcheol to Mingyu to Seri and back to her own son before walking away.  
  
When the woman announced the start of the game and Seri's focus now on the program, Seungcheol slapped Mingyu's left leg and widen his eyes in a scary facade. "Control yourself, Mingyu. She's still your mom so don't be disrespectful, understood?" Massaging the area his hyung hitted, Mingyu just nodded and muttered a small 'sorry.'  
  
The party continues, prizes were given here and there with a delighted air knowing that the children are having fun as well. When Kino came back, Seri suddenly stood up and grabbed his lover's arm and was about to walk away from their table when she turned around and face Mingyu. "Let's meet tomorrow, Mingyu." before walking away.  
  
The two just sat there, Seungcheol throwing a worried look at the younger before speaking up. "We're leaving tomorrow too, Gyu. Just message her what time and I'll wait for you." Upon hearing this, Mingyu relaxed even just for a little and smile tiredly, closing his eyes after leaning his head on the wall behind him.  
  
"I don't know why all of these are happening to me. I just want to be happy, is that too much to ask?" He mumbled with a bitter chuckle, feeling something inside him slowly spilling out of his control, too tired to mask his self. Seungcheol, as the older brother and friend that he is, move closer and pat the other's head to show comfort, not really knowing what to say at the moment.  
  
"You know how ironic what I'm feeling right now? Even though you're probably screaming at the top of your lungs inside you and blaming yourself for what's happening, I still feel happy that you're finally opening up to me." The older continued after Mingyu shook his head as an answer to the question, saying his genuine thoughts and concern.  
  
"Why does it have to be him?" Mingyu mumbled the question he'd been wanting to shout earlier in a hushed voice, making Seungcheol asked him a 'Huh?' due to the younger's quiet voice. "I just said that I'm so thankful you're here, hyung. Thank you." The other just made a 'Mm-mm' sound and waved it off with a casual smile while knowing that Mingyu's eyes are still closed. The younger can still imagine it, anyways.  
  
As soon as the clock strikes 6, Mingyu felt tired and stood up, the other looked at him with a questioning look. Sighing, "I feel sleepy now, hyung. I want to rest now, you should too. You'll be driving us tomorrow." Seungcheol nodded and stood up as well, walking towards Mingyu's mom to say his goodbye.  
  
Saying his 'Happy birthday again, auntie', Seungcheol left the Kim household after hugging Mingyu and patting his back. Since the party isn't done yet, he just marched towards his own room without saying anything. Too tired to talk to anyone else.  
  
Closing the door behind him after entering, he spotted the wooden clock Uncle Choi fixed, that was originally owned by his father, still there. 'Dad didn't even come today. Happy birthday, huh.' he mumbled.  
  
Walking towards his old bedㅡ'It's been a long time, buddy'ㅡhe then plopped himself there and hugged the pillows tightly, wandering whether he sbould scream all of his frustrations there but dismissed.  
  
Looking back at the scenarios that happened, he suddenly sat up straight after remembering the reason why his mind went blank the same time his heart stopped, before anger and disgust took over him earlier.  
  
Feeling the same emotion he felt and endured almost two years ago, "Won.. I can't believe it.." Mingyu mumbled, his vision starting to blur while his heart ache.  
  
Checking his phone in a hurry, his hands shaking shamelessly, he opened his messages and texted Wonwoo a 'Won, can I call you? Please.' and felt mixed emotions; disappointment, sadness, anticipation and longing, when the other didn't answer back after 30 seconds of waiting, not helping to ease his heavy heart and stop the tears flowing out of his eyes, finally breaking out of his caged emotions.  
  
"Why am I crying, huh? Are you weak? I'm not, I'm not, shush. No no no, stop crying, it's going to be okay, Gyu." Mingyu reassured his self by chanting the words, so magical it works everytime, while wiping the salty waters from his eyes using his palms. Closing his eyes before inhaling then exhaling, "I promise you'll be happy again." he stated with a smile on his face, so used to it now.  
  
Looking at the time indicating 6:15 pm which is too early for bed so Mingyu decided to take a look of his old room and find something that might help him lessen his boredom.  
  
Opening the 8-year-old drawer of his nightstand, he found some photos he hid in there, some art materials and nothin more. Moving to his cabinet, he saw his old clothes, still hung up properly but won't need it anymore since he grew a lotㅡhe's still growing though, how?  
  
Taking a look inside each drawer, the bottom one contains something he almost forgot. Taking it out, "Oh? Never thought you're still alive." he muttered, staring at his old phone he replaced a few months ago. Feeling the nostalgia, he went back to his bed and opened it, surprised that it wasn't it its lowest battery yet.  
  
When his lockscreen showed up, lots of messages, social media and update notifications, and missed calls showed up as well, making him flustered and confused. Opening each of them, he got more confused to see an unknown number contacted him before. 'They must have called when I wasn't using this anymore.'  
  
While his mind's still thinking of the possible people behind the unknown number, his new phone lights up with a 'ding!' and a reply was seen. Smiling with his canines showing, Mingyu set aside the old one and grab then unlocked his phone, reading the message that made his day better.  
  
'What's wrong? Just tell me you miss me already.' Even the AI's reply screams Wonwoo, making Mingyu chuckle. He thought of replying but clicked the phone call button instead, and waited for almost 10 seconds before the other answered.  
  
"Why are you hesitating, huh? Did you not miss me too?" The human asked Wonwoo, acting hurt but is smiling behind the screen anyways. The other just snorted, "Oh, so you miss me too, huh. Okay, I heard you." Yeah, they're idiots, aren't they?  
  
Mingyu blushed alone, but take a look of his surroundings if someone can see him, before changing the topic. "Where are you right now?" "Excuse me?"  
  
Chuckling, the human stood up and walked towards the window, the scenery outside already darkening. "Where are you? Are Jeonghan and Jihoon right beside you?"  
  
An 'ah' noise was heard from the AI, "No, I'm inside my room. I think the three of them are still in the living room. Do you need to speak to them? Dinner is serving soon anyways."  
  
The first sentence made Mingyu confused. 'Three of them?' "Yeah, Soonyoung's here too." The other, surprised that he said his thoughts out loud and his bestfriend being there, was about to ask why when his other phone rings.  
  
Mingyu told Wonwoo to wait for a second then muted the call, whilst walking towards his bed. Turning to his old phone, he stared at the unknown number, the same one that dropped lots of missed calls, with confusion.  
  
Clicking the answer button, "Hello? Who is this?" He asked the caller, then felt nervous and more confused when the phone call ended. "Hm.. what's their intention? It can't be a mistake to call me a lot of times already."  
  
Dismissing it, Mingyu picked up his other phone and clicked the microphone button to unmute the call. "Hey Won, you still there? Sorry it took so long." The AI just waved it off with a 'What are you talking about? I took the best nap of my life because of you.' that made the both of them laugh.  
  
"Won.. can you come near your window and look up?" "Ha ha, very funny. Just look up at the sky." Mingyu sarcastically added after his boyfriend asked him if he's currently at the rooftop, waiting.  
  
"The moon's shining brightly tonight, huh?" The human asked, the tone in his voice now soft. "Hm.. there's no moon here tonight though. It rained earlier." Mingyu pouted behind the screen, but smiled after a heartbeat when Wonwoo asked him, "Why do you want me to look for the moon, anyway? You didn't even tell me the reason why you wanted to call in the first place, hm?"  
  
Instead of answering, he said, "You didn't tell me about your dream before I left, too. That's our first topic today." After 3 days of Mingyu staying in their province, this is the first time the two talked. Sighing, "It's nothing serious, just someone reading a letter from his mom and a missing pendant.."  
  
The AI's voice faded when a loud knock was heard from his side, making them stopped talking, Wonwoo excusing himself. Door creaking sounds followed by a distant voice and dialogues from Soonyoung that Mingyu couldn't understand.  
  
The conversation of his bestfriend and boyfriend took less than 20 seconds, before a rustling sound was heard from the receiver. "Umm Gyu, I have to end the call now, dinner is ready." "Oh, okay. Eat well, Won!"  
  
After small talks and rushed goodbyes much to Mingyu's disappointment, the phone call ended, making his mood feel lighter and satisfied anyways. Ironic, isn't it? Just like everything else, from the beginning up till now.  
  
"Is it wrong to love someone like you?"


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fasten your seatbelts o(>__<´)o

Jeonghan walked out of Jihoon's room after successfully making the other eat dinner inside his room.  
  
Taking deep breaths, he marched towards the dining where Wonwoo and Soonyoung is, who are currently talking to XU 247 and asking if it can do backflips without breaking its back and limbs.  
  
Hearing footsteps behind them, Wonwoo looked back and asked, "How's Jihoon? What happened?" The oldest sighed for the nth time while taking a seat beside Soonyoung.  
  
"He's eating dinner in his room now after wasting all of his energy earlier." Jeonghan answered, while the other two are already eating the fried chicken XU 247 served. The answer made Soonyoung's ears perked up, eyebrows knitting.  
  
"What exactly happened, hyung? I was just walking down the hall when I heard loud cracking and falling sounds." Jeonghan just stared at the younger and tightly smiled, a silent signal for Soonyoung to stop asking, the action didn't go unnoticed by Wonwoo.  
  
The older then turned to the AI, WW 717, "Your finger's okay now." pointing to Wonwoo's hand. Looking down, "Oh, yeah. It's doing fine." before smiling, Jeonghan returning the action.  
  
The three continued eating in silence all the while quietly looking at the direction where Jihoon's room is to feel if something bad might happened to the latter but nothing dangerous can be heard. After 10 minutes of devouring their dinner, Wonwoo remembered something.  
  
Clearing his throat as a starter, "By the way, Mingyu called me earlier but he didn't tell me why exactly. I think he wanted to talk to.." His voice faded in an uncomfortable air around their table when Jeonghan stood up, excusing himself after finishing his food to walk towards Jihoon's room.  
  
Soonyoung and Wonwoo just sat there looking at the other's retreating back, getting smaller and smaller each step away from them, not knowing what to say until the AI sighed. "People are being weird today.." His mumbling made the human turned his head towards his company, asking, "Why is that?"  
  
"Jihoon's outburst, then Mingyu calling and requesting for me to look up at the sky and find the moon, and then Jeonghan leaving after dinner, that's unusual, right? He'll talk to us after finishing dinner though."  
  
Slowly nodding his head, Soonyoung asked the part where he didn't and couldn't quite understand why. "What do you think is the reason why Mingyu asked you to find the moon? That's.. weird." The human said, making Wonwoo released an 'Mm-mm' sound to show that he agreed.  
  
Deciding to continue the dying conversation since Wonwoo have the courage as of the moment, "Do you have any idea why Jihoon reacted like that? Like what you heard earlier?" he asked, resulting for Soonyoung to stop his confusing thoughts for a while and lift up his head before smiling at the AI, eyes crinkling into almost-small crescents, not expecting for the conversation to get longer.  
  
Thinking back to what he heard, "I really have no idea why, too. It must be something tragic if he reacted like that. I hope everything's doing okay.." Soonyoung whispered the last sentence somewhat painfully and with worry, making his heart clenched inside his chest, not in a dramatic way but still not going away.  
  
Wonwoo still heard the words from the other's now chapped lips due to his nibbling, asking, "And by everything, you mean Jihoon?" to try pushing and ignoring that unwanted atmosphere still in their area. It's a successful mission though, just by looking at Soonyoung's wrinkled forehead slowly disappearing and the pout that formed out of concentration now relaxed, you can tell that it is.  
  
The pout is still there though, somewhat, but kind-of in a bashful way now and his chubby cheeks with a tinge of pink on it. "You really know when to interrupt serious moments, no? I'm trying to become a concerned friend here, stop laughing at everything!" Soonyoung scolded Wonwoo after hearing the latter's giggles. "You really like him, huh?" with a teasing smile.  
  
"Am I really that obvious? I mean, even before I confess to him?" "How am I supposed to know..?" Wonwoo asked a genuine question, genuinely curious too. The human just nodded his head like he's tasting a batter and is satisfied with the result, all slow. 'I knew it, people are weird today. Maybe I should just talk to XU and annoy him, but he might use lazerbeams on me. Does he have it? How come I-'  
  
His unrealistic thoughts got cut off by Soonyoung's question of 'Aren't you?', making him blink once, then twice. "Huh? Sorry, I didn't hear it." The human then laid his elbow on top of the now cleaned up table, thanks to XU 247, before laying his head there, repeating the unheard question. "You are inlove too, aren't you?"  
  
That made Wonwoo choke on his own, thankful that there's no water but not of the question. "What? What? Me? Inlove?" He asked flustered, making Soonyoung think that the AI's already malfunctioning infront of him. Continuing, "What made you think I'm inlove with Mingyu? Huh, Soonyoung?" the AI challenged, making Soonyoung clasp his hands together with an 'Aha!' sound, successful he caught the mouse in his trap.  
  
"I didn't say it was Mingyu. And, just call me Soon."  
  
The sudden accusation made Wonwoo realized that Soonyoung really didn't say anything about the man inside his head, and now he's confused with his self, and doomed. Trying to clear the wrong information, "Well, you're exactly pertaining to him, right? Does it look like I have feelings for Jeonghan? We're not that close until now anyways." he blurted the words that might save him, that made the human's eyes widen a fraction after realizing what the other is trying to say.  
  
"You like Jihoon, too!?" Soonyoung asked, suddenly alert and is seeing imaginary alarm siren images at the top of Wonwoo's head. Okay, maybe he's overreacting. Wonwoo, on the other hand, burst out laughing whilst covering his face with his hands, trying to lessen the noise of his laughter and the secondhand embarrassment he's feeling. Anyways, he's so thankful of Soonyoung's mind for saving him.  
  
The human then crossed his arms, "Don't laugh at me! I'm asking you a serious serious question here! Like, the it-is-a-matter-of-life-and-death serious serious, hmp." before saying whatever's inside his braincells right now, probably nonsense? Wonwoo couldn't quite understand where this is coming from either. The onky thing that is clear right now is that Soonyoung's a fool. Jihoon's fool, to say the least.  
  
Calming down, "You know that's not what I meant, right?" the AI asked, still stiffling the laugh wanting to come out, making Soonyoung stop the act and chuckle. "I was just joking! Okay let's go back to the topic. What do you mean by you not having feelings for Jeonghan?" "I like him, but not romantically. He's a caring and thoughtful person butㅡ" "You have feelings for Mingyu!"  
  
After hearing that, Wonwoo's thankful that there is no water inside his mouth and anywhere near him, for the second time.  
  
  
  
Currently 10 pm, Soonyoung's humming a random tune whilst walking towards his roomㅡthe guest room just 3 days agoㅡafter brushing his teeth and cleaning himself up. After his fun and light conversation with Wonwoo, the heavy tension from earlier since Jeonghan walked away then long forgotten after the two joked around with each other, leaving them feel somewhat contented.  
  
After that, they went their separate ways; the AI towards his room and Soonyoung transferred to the living room to watch television.  
  
When the ending song of Mr. Bean was heard, he decided to sleep already and is now near Jihoon's room. By the time he can measure a distance of 5 centimeters away from the door, he stopped walking and is contemplating whether to knock and talk to Jihoon whatever happened or not, but decided to knock nonetheless and readied himself for a possibility of breaking his eardrums if the younger shout later.  
  
But his phone rings that made his hand linger in the air, doorknob untouched. Looking at the screen, he saw a 'Seokmin' at the top, making him furrowed his brows in confusion. Answering, "Hello, Seoㅡ" his greetings unspoken, now reppaced by, "What did he do this time?" after hearing the younger's hiccups.  
  
Saying his 'Wait for me' before ending the call, he jogged away from the door and rushed out of the Lee household with his pajamas, not noticing the little shine of light coming from Jihoon's room, door ajar.  
  
"Ji, what are we going to do with him? Of all the billion people in the world, why is it so small? Why does it have to be him?" Jeonghan asked a dazed Jihoon, whose eyes are unfocused ever since the revelation that shocked the both of them.  
  
The older didn't get any response so he, "Ji! Hey, what's happening to you? I thought you calmed down already." that made Jihoon shook his head, now present.  
  
Sighing, "I am, I am, don't worry. We are sticking to the plan no matter what happens, we've been looking for the person who ruined everything, we're not letting them go." Jihoon stated, his heart and mind still breaking into two if he wanted to be honest, but revenge and justice are above all of the worries and anxieties, and the right time is coming soon, now at arm's length.  
  
Nodding his head while looking at the files Jihoon saved at his laptop, "Are these enough as evidences? Phone number, IP address, voice record, and their conversation.." Jeonghan mumbled, scrolling through the evidences they got ahold of.  
  
Jihoon then sat beside the older and rest his head on Jeonghan's left shoulder, feeling the energy getting suck out of him now that he calmed down already and can think freely unlike earlier. Jeonghan just smile at the simple action, before turning his head towards his phone when it chimed, receiving a message from someone.  
  
Taking a peek carefully to not ruin Jihoon's comfortable position, "Seungcheol said they're going back home tomorrow."  
  
Hearing that, Jihoon tensed but managed to lift up his head to show his knitted forehead, before sitting up straight, the comfortable position now completely ruined. "What day is tomorrow?" The younger asked, all the while picking up his phone next to his laptop then heard a 'Monday' from Jeonghan, whose holding his phone now and typing something.  
  
Unlocking his phone to check, Jihoon sighed, "Did he say what time they'll arrive?" "Oh, it said past lunchttime here. And, he'll be dropping offㅡ" then raise a hand as a signal for Jeonghan to stop talking.  
  
Getting the silent message, "Okay, okay." Sighs. "What about Wonwoo? The contract isn't done yet, Ji. They still have 1 month left." The older questioned Jihoon, who checked his calendar to see if it's true, which is confirmed when he saw the beginning date and the present.  
  
For the whole 3 hours of their conversation, gathering evidences and information, and the biggest revelation, all the two did was sigh for how many imes already, uncountable.  
  
But it keeps increasing each second, and now that Jihoon sighed fof the nth time again, before saying, "I don't care about that contract. As long as they don't come here and step inside my house, that's fine. We are not giving Wonwoo back to anyone, because he's safer here." or more like stating firmly, out of his concern and hard-headed mind.  
  
The other just nodded his head, clearly understanding what Jihoon is feeling for he is the same as him. Looking at the time on the top most of his phone, "It's 10:07 pm already? Soonyoung's probably sleeping now. You should get a rest too, Ji! We'll continue this tomorrow, okay?"  
  
Jeonghan then hugged Jihoon before saying 'Good night' and stood up. Walking towards the door, he remembered, "Oh, should we call uncle about all of this?", receiving a 'Maybe' afterwards.  
  
Finally leaving Jihoon's room and now outside, confused, "How come he didn't reply a 'good night' to me? Where's Soonyoung?" before shaking his head and unlocked the door next to Jihoon's. Meanwhile, Jihoon stood up from his seat and stride towards his room's window, gazing up at the dark sky painted with nothing but black and two stars shining brightly.  
  
Hugging himself after the cold breeze hits his skin when he opened the window, he smiled with his eyes tired and sad, asking a mumbled question, "Am I still doing the right thing, auntie? Aren't I being too strict the whole time? I'm so happy you're together now, though." before leaning his head on the window frame, hoping he won't fell asleep while standing.  
  
  
  
"Should the story have its happy ending, though?"  
  
The man thought out loud, think what he should do to his self-written story. He has been writing his romance-mystery novel for about 3 months already, its pages have reached 208 already, says the number at the bottom of MS Word.  
  
"I'm so tired already, I should go to sleep now. What time is it..?" Reaching for his phone, he saw the time indicating 9:14 pm. 'It's too early for an adult', he thought, chuckling sadly after realizing that time's flying by really fast, he couldn't keep up. He then heard a 'ding!' sound, a notification.  
  
Unlocking his phone to a check a new message from someone he's expectingㅡwell, that someone always message anywaysㅡand saw 'Ming', making him nod his head, nothing new, just like that typographical error.  
  
'hey won~ ure not replying to me,, you dont love me anhmoreㅠㅠ'  
  
This put a smile on his face. "He's not sleeping yet, huh? Such a kid." He muttered while typing, 'We're not teenagers anymore, dumdum. I've been busy writing, I'm sorry.'  
  
Ming: oh no, no worries. just wondering why your messages have been sleeping lately  
  
Won: oh yeah? i've been sleeping very well lately too  
  
Ming: really? wow  
Ming: please note my sarcasm there  
  
Won: shut up, i'm almost done writing my novel here.  
  
Ming: oooohh!!! let me see!!.!.!  
  
Won: nope, no can do. if i get promoted because of this story, i'll give you the original copy.  
  
Ming: eh?  
Ming: EH?  
Ming: OH KY GOD REALLY  
  
Won: what's with you? ah seriously  
  
Ming: yay!! personally?  
  
  
Wonwoo stared at the last part from the other, considering for a while before sighing again, everytime. The male has been thinking if chatting with a stranger is wrong, but Ming isn't just a random stranger to him, he's a friend. A close one, the thought kind-of embarrassing to him since he's the first one to initiate that, unlike with his closest friends. Of course he won't say that.  
  
Thank good ness for technology, such an advantage for an introvert like him.  
  
Ming might be Wonwoo's close friend based on his consideration, but a faceless one in his imagination.  
  
  
Won: if i find the right time, we'll meet up. but, it's still not allowed, i told you already.  
  
Ming: is it because of your boyfriend?  
Ming: how come i saw your boyfriend's face before and nof yours  
  
Won: he doesn't want me to leave my house, idk why  
Won: he says it's dangerous  
  
Won: Ming?  
  
  
Ming didn't answer for a whole minute, making Wonwoo confused and worried.  
  
  
Ming: im sorry,, i just remembered something  
  
Won: spill  
  
Ming: you know i always spill something right?  
  
  
Wonwoo laughed with his nose scrunching and deep voice surrounding him, and just like that, the negative emotions left his heart, making him smile. The two talked for the whole hour, just like always, and bid each other goodbye when Wonwoo yawned sleepily.  
  
  
WW 717 then opened his eyes, still lying horizontally on the bed where he was sleeping just a second ago, before sitting up straight and looked around the blurry room to adjust his eyes to the darkness inside.  
  
'Another dream..' He thought, adding lightness to the room by switching on the lights after he stood up, making him lean on the wall when the world before him spins after getting up too fast. Deciding to drink some water since he's awake now and his throat is drying up, Wonwoo walked towards the door and leave.  
  
When he arrived at the kitchen, he was about to turn on the lights when the entrance hallway lights up all of a sudden, making the AI stopped in his tracks just like how his right hand linger in the air from touching the switch, now alert and nervous, not knowing what to do next.  
  
Removing his gaze from the switch to the area behind him, he heard someone mumbling words he can't understand clearly before hearing something fell off loudly, making him jump with a squeak, covering his mouth with his hand afterwards.  
  
Shadow coming closer and getting smaller each step it makes away from the light, Wonwoo search for something that might help him make the person lose its consciousness so he can have time to say it to any of the other three people in this house.  
  
Taking a hold of the broom leaning beside the sink, the AI tiptoed slowly and carefully to not make any noise and give idea where he is. One step. Two step. Left then right foot.  
  
Positioning the broom, in an angle just like how batters do it in their baseball game, when he can see the silhouette of the unknown personㅡ'a thief', Wonwoo thoughtㅡwhose back was turned to him and is not walking in a straight line while pointing something below him.  
  
'Wait.. a thief not walking in a straight line..?'  
  
The thought made Wonwoo furrowed his brows in confusion, still alert though but somewhat calm now, before striding forward with his weapon. The view in front of him is now clearer due to the light providing the both of them with brightness despite the time showing in the clock, says 2:30 am, and he can hear the 'thief' stuttering something about 'slippers' and 'following him'.  
  
The man in front of him is smaller than Wonwoo, with dishiveled hair and his pajamas onㅡwith the same state as his hairㅡand is emitting a strong smell of something addicting, alcohol is, too obvious not to know. Even Wonwoo who never drink before, can describe the smell of liquor.  
  
'Soonyoung, this kid..'  
  
Lowering the broom in his hands whilst walking towards the drunk man, called Soonyoung, the AI can hear the human say something a wasted will, now that his brain's not functioning well and is probably a mess inside his throbbing head.  
  
"S-Stop following me, aish! Why is this slipper coming with me ever since I came here..? Are you.. spying on me, huh? Go to sh-leep!" he just asked a nonsense, making Wonwoo chuckle after setting his eyes on the other's feet and saw a missing slipper. 'Must be the one following him.'  
  
When the smell of alcohol entered Wonwoo's nose due to the distance between them, the AI guide Soonyoung to the kitchen rather hardly due to a whiny company he's carrying, the purpose of his coming out from his room now forgotten.  
  
Dragging a chair first before making the human sit down somewhat properlyㅡstop flapping your arms around, Soonyoung! It's not wings!ㅡWonwoo then stride towards the refrigerator to get some water for the otherㅡmight as well get some for his dried throat since earlierㅡthen came back with a pitcher in his hand.  
  
Seeing someone approaching, "W-Won? That little one is following me~! Do you know them?" Soonyoung said drunkly after recognizing the AI's features. A miracle that he can still think in that state.  
  
Sitting beside the human, Wonwoo pour some water onto the glass and guide the rim of it in front of Soonyoung's plump lips, deciding to help the other drink the liquid easier and faster without wasting any of it and make the AI mop the floor if it really spills. Gulping its contents to make him sober and take the pain in his head go away even just for a little, Soonyoung then thank the other and close his eyes, feeling the reality now.  
  
Wonwoo just shook his head and roll his eyes, pouring himself some water and drunk it all, a satisfaction indeed, before throwing his starter. "Where did you go? It's 2 in the morning and you're out and almost passed out. Good thing nothing bad happened to you." The AI said, a hint of annoyance in his tone, surprising him.  
  
Soonyoung then opened his right eye and lean his head on his palm after resting his right elbow on top of the table, "Nothing bad happened? Hangover isn't nothing at all, ugh. Atleast I'm tipsy now~" before raising his fists in the air while swaying side-by-side, singing words the AI couldn't understandㅡmust be an alien languageㅡall the while smiling widely with his eyes closed.  
  
Wonwoo just hide his face under his left palm, still embarrassed even though no one's staring at them.  
  
It's so weird how this occurence feels habitual.  
  
"Hey, you still didn't tell me where you went. Did Jihoon and you fight again?" Wonwoo repeated the question in a serious face, that didn't intimidate Soonyoung even at the least. Instead, "How come you look exactly like Wonwoo? Like, really really. But you have no book in you so I guess not.." the corner of his lips drooping, the same time his head lower like a little boy not getting the plushie he wanted.  
  
The AI's CPU heated after that. "Do you want me to become.. Wonwoo?" So weird to say that with your own nameㅡgiven name by Jeonghan. WW 717 spoke up in a soft tone, like calming a child to stop the upcoming tantrums or loud cries. "I can be like him if you want me to."  
  
"Really?" Soonyoung asked, lifting his head up.  
  
Wonwoo nodded his head and smiled, "Tell me what I should do."  
  
The human then tilted his head and placed his pointer finger below his chin, pretending to think. "You can read me a book! I want to sleep~" "Oh yeah? Where can I find one though?" "The library upstairs! I want a murder mystery one!"  
  
Eyes widening after hearing the request of a sleepy Soonyoung, eyes closing then opening for an attempt to stay awake. "Can you really sleep with that..?" with an unsure expression plastered on. After receiving a slow nod from the other, "Okay, let me just bring these back to where it is from.." The AI started, holding the pitcher and place it back to the fridge, the 2 glasses on top of each other towards the sink. "And then, I'll go get it."  
  
While the latter's doing his own thing, Soonyoung smiled with his eyes memorizing the scenario before him he missed so much.  
  
"Thank you so much, Won."  
  
After turning around, WW 717 stopped on his tracks, seeing Soonyoung snoring already while using his right arm as a pillow. The AI just shook his head and walked closer, looking at the other's sleeping, relaxed face. Too vulnerable at the moment.  
  
Clock striking at 2:52 am, Wonwoo carried Soonyoung towards the couch.  
  
  
  
Morning arrives, then afternoon.  
  
Wonwoo is currently walking towards the library Soonyoung said last night, wanting to fulfill the human's wish and might as well read something before his boyfriend arrives. He might like some books in there too, and ask for Jihoon's permission.  
  
Arriving upstairs, the AI stopped moving forward the moment he saw Jihoon's room, infront of him. Looking back to what happened last dinner, he breathe in then out, gathering the confidence to knock at the human's door without backing out like a child ringing the doorbell for no reason.  
  
Knock once, then twice. No answer was heard, even the clanking of metals or loud typing sounds of the other's fingers on the keyboard.  
  
"Jihoon? Are you awake?" whilst positioning his left ear near the door for an attempt to hear anything, even Jihoon's breathing, before jumping back when the door opened slightly the moment he lean his hands on it. Curiosity hits him, stepping inside.  
  
"Jihoon?" No answer. "Hello? Where are you?"  
  
The moment he can see the guitar laying on top of the bed next to the wall, the AI then closed the door behind him, taking a look of the surrounding before his eyes. A drum set and piano are next to each other and the computer, placed on top of a white-painted computer case, is currently open, a digital audio workstation is seen.  
  
"Maybe a hobby of his..? How talented can he be?" Wonwoo mumbled, feeling aweful, before walking closer to the guitar, wanting to struck a string but doesn't like touching things that isn't his so.. maybe next time. Sighs. Pretty sure Jihoon won't like it if someone lay a finger on his possessions, anyway, he guessed.  
  
'Oh, Soonyoung.' with a chuckle.  
  
Moving his attention away from the instrument, "Hm? This is.." WW 717 muttered when he laid his eyes on the bedside table, the pen on top of it caught his interest, like it's calling his name. Picking it up, he gasped audibly in a loud volume, the same time his eyes widen slowly, not because of how beautiful the design is, but because of the carved letters on it.  
  
The intial of the words that he kept hearing these past few days of his existence. The name, too familiar to not remember.  
  
'J.WW'  
  
His grip tightened at first, before loosening for a little to twirl the pen in his fingers, the strange emotion flooding inside him unknown. Absorbed in his little examination, Wonwoo jumped in surprise after hearing the door creaked that made him open the cabinet of the table in panic, the original placement of the pen forgotten due to his nervousness.  
  
Placing the writing weapon inside, he was about to close it when another thing caught his attention. If the pen he saw played with his mind, this one clearly knows when the timing is right.  
  
Jihoon, though confused why the other's here since he was in the bathroom a second ago, walked closer to Wonwoo before stopping in his tracks the moment the AI picked up the photo and turned his head towards his creator, the two now having an eye contact.  
  
"Won.."  
  
  
  
Soonyoung groaned, feeling the pain in his head throbbing continuously, making him scrunch his face and hold his head with one hand, still with closed eyes. "What did I do this time?"  
  
"Kill yourself with alcohol. I swear Soonyoung, if you whine at me because of that pain you're feeling just like last time.." Sigh is the only next thing Jeonghan could release, realizing that scolding the other might worsen the situation. He did deserve it, anyways. Sigh.  
  
Hearing that and knowing that Jeonghan's there, "I'm sorry, hyung~ Please help me live, just like last time." Jeonghan then got the statement, passing the aspirin to the younger. "Don't you want to eat lunch first?" He added, whilst Soonyoung's gulping down the medicine along with water, almost choking. "Lunch?"  
  
Snorting, "How can you be so shock? It's always like this." That's Jeonghan stating the obvious.  
  
Pouting, "It's only 12:14 pm, you guys don't eat lunch this time." And that's Soonyoung trying to get away from the obvious.  
  
"But it is lunchttime already, Mr. Kwon. Don't say anything else and wait here for a second, I'll go get your brunch. We still have to talk with Jihoon." making Soonyoung tilt his head in confusion.  
  
"Why? What happened?"  
  
The older sighed, considering to take an aspirin as well, before telling the truth.  
  
"It's Mingyu."  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you so much for coming this far! >_<  
>   
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/boochoiled)


End file.
